JP3768587B2 - Mechanical parts - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a mechanism component mainly used for an operation panel.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Today's mounting of electronic components is mostly automated by using a wave soldering tank (hereinafter referred to as “automatic soldering”) from the viewpoint of reducing man-hours and productivity. In the case of semiconductor elements that are inferior in performance and mechanical parts that are mechanical parts that have a mechanical structure, the operator must perform an automatic soldering process for rough electronic parts in order to avoid problems caused by exposure to high heat. Soldering is generally performed manually with a soldering iron (hereinafter referred to as “hand soldering”), which is suitable for mounting expensive semiconductor elements such as LSI (large scale integration) and relays with high replacement frequency. In the past, it was customary to mount a dedicated socket with automatic soldering and mount it in a later process.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the mechanical parts, that is, switches and constant variable elements (variable resisters, variable capacitors, etc.), except for relays, can be mounted on a circuit board without performing soldering after the automatic soldering process. In fact, there is no choice but to rely solely on manual soldering after the automatic soldering process. In addition, since the conventional mechanical parts are usually an integral part, in order to obtain mechanical parts having different functions, the entire mechanical parts had to be individually designed.
[0004]
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a mechanical component that can be mounted on a circuit board without performing soldering after an automatic soldering process and can be easily and versatilely manufactured. To do.
[0005]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The mechanical component according to the present invention, which has been made to solve the above-described problems, includes an electric circuit inside the casing, and includes an operation unit that prompts a change in the operating state of the electric circuit from the outside of the casing. An external terminal that is connected to the electrical circuit and elastically contacts the contact surface formed on the circuit board is provided on a side portion, and support means for holding the circuit board from the front and back is provided. . This mechanical component can be configured by combining functional blocks that can be connected, and the housing may include a variable resistance circuit including a resistor and a slider in contact with the resistor, You may include the switch circuit which has the contact opened and closed by operation of a means.
[0006]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, the mechanical component according to the present invention will be described with reference to an example in which a mounting hole 9 is provided in the circuit board 3 in advance and is mounted on a frame-shaped socket 10 disposed so as to surround the mounting hole 8.
[0007]
1 to 10 show an embodiment of a mechanism component. This mechanical component includes, from the front, a resistance block 11 including a variable resistance circuit including a resistor 6 and a slider 7 in contact therewith, and a switch block 13 including a switch circuit including contacts 8 and 8 and a contact opening / closing member 12. The bottomed cylindrical cylinder block 14 is connected as a functional block with rivets 15 and communicated with the inside of the resistance block 11 and the switch block 13 as shown in FIG. 12 and the operation rod 2 that supports the rotors 37, 38, 39 provided with the sliding contact pieces 36 for generating a click feeling so as not to turn with respect to the rotor. 11 and the switch block 13 so as to be rotatable with respect to the length of the hollow portion of the cylinder block 14 containing the biasing member. Those provided retractably with a stroke. The operating bar 2 is projected and retracted in such a manner that the pressed operating bar 2 is locked in a state where the operating bar 2 has entered the housing 1 for a predetermined length, and the lock is released by pressing the operating bar 2 again. . Hereinafter, this is referred to as a push-lock type operating rod 2.
[0008]
As shown in FIG. 10, the slider 7 of the variable resistance circuit is always in contact with the resistor 6 formed on the substrate 34 regardless of whether the operating rod 2 is raised or lowered, and slides by rotating the operating rod 2. The child 7 moves on the resistor 6. Further, the contact opening / closing member 12 always rotates according to the operation rod 2 regardless of whether the operation rod 2 appears or not, and during the rotation, the relationship between the bushing 35 having a gear made of radial irregularities on the surface and the sliding contact piece 36. When a counterclockwise click feeling is involved and the counterclockwise rotation is reached to the limit, the contacts 8 and 8 in the switch block 13 are opened with a relatively large click feeling. At the same time, the slider 7 is also connected to the resistor 6. Reach the end of the. As described above, such as the retractable of operating rod 2 in the aspect of the embodiment, not lead to a change in the electrical effect, for accommodating the operation knobs of the electric device to the surface of a continuously operating panel 16 as shown in FIG. 4, This is mainly due to design considerations.
[0009]
The front edge of the resistor block 11 protrudes sideways on all four sides, and is formed as a front support portion 17 that supports the front surface of the circuit board 3 to be mounted. A key portion 18 indicating the mounting direction is provided on a pair of opposite sides. It is. Further, between the resistor block 11 and the switch block 13, a rectangular frame-shaped support ring (one of functional blocks) 19 made of, for example, metal is interposed, and the key portion 18 of the support ring 19 is A rear support portion 20 is integrally extended from the outer edge facing the formed side to support the circuit board 3 to be mounted from the rear. Each rear support portion 20 bends the strip extending from the outer edge of the support ring 19 forward from each base portion, and gradually increases the distance between the side surface of the casing 1 and the strip toward the front. It is formed so as to be large, and the front end of the strip is bent toward the side surface of the housing 1. In this mechanical component, the front support portion 17 and the rear support portion 20 form a body as a support means for sandwiching the circuit board 3 and sometimes the operation panel 16. It is desirable that the support means can be clamped appropriately and tightly so that play is not generated in the mounted state of the mechanical parts. In the above example, a relatively thick strip is used.
[0010]
Of the side surfaces of the housing 1 where the rear support portion 20 does not exist, one side surface has both ends of the resistor 6 of the variable resistance circuit and the external terminals 4 and 4 drawn from the slider 7 to the side surface of the resistor block 11. , 4 are arranged side by side along one piece of the front support portion 17 in a state of being bent forward at their base portions, and are drawn out from the contacts 8 and 8 to the side surface of the switch block 13 on the other side surface. In addition, two external terminals 5 and 5 are juxtaposed along one piece of the front support portion 17 in a state where the external terminals 5 and 5 are bent forward at their base portions, and these are connected via the contacts 22 supported by the socket 10. The circuit board 3 is connected to the circuit pattern 21. It is desirable that the external terminals 4 and 5 have some elasticity so that contact with the surface of the contact 22 can be ensured even if some play occurs in the mounting state of the mechanical parts.
[0011]
In the case of this mechanical component, the variable resistance circuit and the switch circuit are not electrically connected, and a desired circuit may be configured by appropriately connecting the external terminals 4, 4, 4, 5, and 5. Further, it is also possible to configure a mechanical component that functions as a simple variable resistor as shown in FIG. 7 by simply removing the switch block 13 from the above configuration (see FIG. 6) and using the short operation rod 2.
[0012]
FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the socket 10 together with an example of a mechanical component according to the present invention. The socket 10 is formed of a rectangular frame-shaped socket body 25 having a support hole 24 into which a front end portion of the mechanical component is fitted, using an insulating synthetic resin, and the socket body 25 is opposed to the socket body 25 in the molding process. On the two sides, contacts 22 that elastically contact the external terminals 4 and 5 of the mechanical component and are soldered to the circuit pattern 21 of the circuit board 3 are disposed. The contact 22 is formed using a conductive metal as a raw material, and each of the contacts 22 penetrates from the support hole 24 side to the side of the socket 10 at the front part of the two sides of the socket body 25, and the intermediate part is inserted into the socket body 25. Supported. The support hole 24 side of each contact 22 is bent backward so as to be able to elastically receive the external terminals 4 and 5 disposed on the side of the mechanical component, while the opposite side of each contact 22 is The socket body 25 faces the side and is bent rearward, and its tip is shaped like a pin so that it can be inserted into the through hole 26 of the circuit board 3.
[0013]
Further, the socket body 25 is provided with a main stopper 27 protruding downward from the diagonal of the back surface and a sub stopper 28 protruding from the back surfaces of the two opposite sides, thereby preventing rotation and vertical / horizontal deviation of the socket 10. I am sure of the certainty. The socket body 25 is further provided with a covering piece 29 extending from the lower inner edge of the side where the contact 22 is provided along the opening surface and covering almost half of the support hole 24. On the inner edge, a notch 30 that faces the support hole 24 and fits the key part 18 of the mechanism part is located at a position deviated from the center of both sides so as not to be fitted in a different direction when the mechanism part is mounted. It is provided. Since the stoppers 27 and 28 serve to reinforce the support state, it is desirable to provide them at the four corners, and it is preferable to provide the covering pieces 29 as much as possible in order to ensure prevention of adhesion of the flux. At this time, the position where the covering piece 29 is provided is a position that does not hinder the latching of the rear support portion 20 of the mechanical component to the circuit board 3 and is below the support hole 24 side of the contact 22 of the socket 10. It is essential. That is, in principle, the contact 22 and the covering piece 29 of the socket 10 are provided at a place where the external terminals 4 and 5 of the mechanical component are accommodated, and the rear support portion 20 of the mechanical component is provided so as to avoid an area where the covering piece 29 is bent. Become.
[0014]
In mounting the mechanical component, first, only the socket 10 is mounted on the circuit board 3 and automatic soldering is performed. Since the socket 10 is provided with the covering piece 29, the flux 23 does not adhere to the contact 22 of the socket 10 as shown in FIG. 9 even when the flux is applied as a pre-process to be passed through the wave solder bath. Each contact 22 is inserted into the through-hole 26 of the circuit board 3 and the main stopper 27 and the sub-stopper 28 are provided as described above. There is no worry that the mounting position of the socket 10 is shifted. In addition, if, for example, a hook-shaped latching portion 31 (see FIG. 1) is formed at the tip of the main stopper 27 or the sub-stopper 28 to be hooked on the back surface of the circuit board 3 by mounting, Is suppressed, and the fixing to the circuit board 3 can be made more reliable.
[0015]
The mechanical parts are fitted into the socket 10 as shown in FIG. Therefore, even if it is in the housing 1 of the mechanical component mainly made of synthetic resin, there is no risk of deformation in the thermal atmosphere in the automatic soldering process or causing functional malfunctions. The work is very easy, and even after the mounting, the front and back surfaces of the circuit board 3 are clamped by the front support portion 17 and the rear support portion 20, so that there is no fear that the mechanical component itself is detached during operation. At the mounting position of the socket 10 on the circuit board 3, stoppers 27 and 28 of the socket 10 and mounting holes 9 into which the mechanical parts can be inserted are provided in advance, but the rotation and displacement of the mechanical parts are more reliably suppressed. It is desirable to provide a mounting hole 9 having a shape substantially equal to the upper cross section of the mechanical component.
[0016]
The covering piece 29 is bent downward as shown in FIG. 8 along with the insertion of the mechanical component into the support hole 24, and the support hole 24 is fully opened. If, for example, a polyamide resin such as a polyamide resin is selected as the material of the socket main body 25 that is integral with the covering piece 29, the covering piece 29 will break off from the base and fall off when the mechanical component is mounted. There is no.
[0017]
Conventionally, a relatively large mechanical component having an operation means 2 that can hold the operation rod 2 or the operation rod 2 as an operation means is in a state of lying down with respect to the circuit board 3 regardless of whether or not it is a push lock type. Although it is mounted or fixed in a state where the operation panel 16 of the electric device is sandwiched, in the former case, since the circuit board 3 needs to be erected with respect to the operation panel 16, for example, A circuit board 3 for fixing a display element such as an LED (light-emitting diode) 32 or the like is separately required, and the internal space of the electric device is partitioned by the circuit board 3 to hinder the layout of the internal space. In many cases, the latter has problems such as the necessity to perform wiring using lead wires or connectors from the external terminals 4 and 5 of the mechanical parts to the circuit board 3. It was.
[0018]
On the other hand, since the mechanical component according to the present invention can be fixed upright with respect to the circuit board 3 as shown in FIG. 4, the circuit board 3 can be fixed almost in parallel with the operation panel 16, so The space can be used effectively, and the display element and the mechanical component can be arranged in parallel on the common circuit board 3. Further, when the mechanical component is erected on the circuit board 3 fixed in parallel to the operation panel 16 in this way, a light leakage prevention material (rubber or the like) 33 is attached to the front surface of the mechanical component, the operation panel 16, and the like. However, in the conventional mechanical component that is mounted in a lying state, the contact state of the light leakage preventing material 33 is extremely unstable. In many cases, light leaked from the gaps in the holes where the mechanical parts were exposed.
[0019]
The above is one example of the present invention, and the mechanical parts to be selected may be, for example, a toggle switch, a push switch, a rotary switch, or a push button. Further, the structure of the mechanical component and the means for communicating the external terminal and the circuit pattern of the circuit board are not limited to the above configuration. For example, the number of the external terminals can be changed as appropriate. It may be provided facing the rear side. At this time, not only the support means that prevents the vertical movement of the mechanical component is provided, but also the elasticity of the external terminal itself that secures contact when the vertical movement occurs is more important. When the external terminal is crimped to the contact from the front to the back as in this configuration, the contact should be present upward on the surface of the socket or circuit board, so that the flux adheres to the surface of the contact. This possibility is naturally reduced, and the possibility is further reduced by increasing the thickness of the socket to increase the distance from the circuit board surface. As described above, there are various ways of providing the contacts. By devising the way of providing the contacts, it may be possible to prevent the flux from adhering to the contacts without providing the covering pieces.
[0020]
In the means for connecting the external terminal and the circuit pattern of the circuit board, the single contact may be directly mounted on the circuit board without supporting the contact receiving the external terminal as a socket, or the circuit pattern of the circuit board The external terminal may be brought into direct contact with the contact formed as a part. At that time, the mechanical component should be firmly supported by the edge of the mounting hole of the circuit board without depending on the contact and the socket as much as possible considering the fixing strength between the mechanical part and the circuit board. By doing so, it is possible to avoid problems such as poor contact between the external terminal and the contact and dropout of the contact. In addition, since the rotation of the mechanical component with respect to the mounting hole also causes the above problem, it is desirable that the cross-sectional shape of the housing be a non-rotatable shape such as a square. In this case, it is needless to say that the mounting hole of the circuit board is desired to have a shape in which the housing is just fitted.
[0021]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, when the mechanical parts according to the present invention are used, only the contacts and sockets pass through the wave solder tank, so that troubles due to heat of the mechanical parts can be avoided and the mechanical parts can be reliably supported on the circuit board. Even if the operation is difficult, the connection board and the circuit pattern are not damaged. In addition to a smaller number of parts compared to conventional front panel mechanical parts, the mechanical parts can be mounted on a circuit board including a display element and other circuits, and it is relatively easy if necessary. Since it can be removed, it is possible to greatly reduce the number of work steps when incorporating a circuit board or the like into the chassis or at the time of adjustment before shipping as a product, and the degree of freedom in design is high. In addition, mechanical parts that could not be connected to the circuit board by automatic soldering in the past can produce results that are substantially the same as those of automatic mounting. Can greatly contribute to cost reduction. Further, if the functional blocks that can be connected are combined, the effect is enhanced.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a usage diagram showing an example of a mechanical component according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an example of how mechanical parts are attached according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a circuit configuration example inside a mechanical component.
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of an attachment mode of a mechanical component according to the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a plan view showing an example of a socket that supports a contact;
FIG. 6 is a side view showing an example of a mechanical component according to the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a side view showing an example of a mechanical component according to the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing movement of a covering piece in a socket that supports a contact;
FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing the action of a covering piece in a socket that supports a contact.
FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a mechanical component according to the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Housing 3 Circuit Board 4, 5 External Terminal 6 Resistor 7 Slider 8 Contact

Claims (4)

Comprising an electrical circuit in the housing (1), comprising operating means for prompting a change in the operating conditions of the electric circuit from the outside of the housing (1), on the side of the housing (1), the electric an external terminal (4, 5) for elastically face contact to a contact surface formed to correspond to the mounting hole (9) in and the circuit board connected to the circuit (3) is provided, the front and back of the circuit board (3) A support means for holding from the circuit board (3) is provided in the case (1), and the support means is provided on the circuit board (3) in a state in which the case is fitted in the mounting hole (9) of the circuit board (3). A front support portion (17) that abuts the front surface and supports the front surface; and a metal strip extending from the outer edge of the housing is bent forward from each base portion; The separation length from the strip is gradually increased toward the front, and the tip of the strip is attached to the housing. Mechanical parts, characterized in that bent toward the side of and a rear support portion (20) for supporting the circuit board (3) from behind. 2. The mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the electric circuit includes a plurality of electric circuits, and the plurality of electric circuits are incorporated in a connectable functional block and the connectable functional blocks are combined. parts.   3. A variable resistance circuit comprising a resistor (6) and a slider (7) in contact with the resistor (6) is included in the casing (1) as the electric circuit. Mechanical parts.   4. The mechanical component according to claim 1, wherein a switch circuit having a contact (8) that opens and closes by operation of an operating means is included in the casing (1) as the electric circuit.

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