JP4323363B2 - Switch device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a pressing operation type switch device in which a contact portion has a sealed structure to improve waterproofness.

  As a conventional example of this type of switch device, a waterproof member made of rubber or the like is disposed so as to close the contact housing portion provided in the lower case, and the peripheral portion of the waterproof member is sandwiched between the lower case and the upper case In addition, there is known a structure in which the bulging portion of the waterproof member protruding outward from the through hole of the upper case is closely fixed to the pressed protrusion of the slider (for example, see Patent Document 1). In such a switch device, a fixed contact is fixed in a contact housing portion of a lower case, and a slider attached with a movable contact is held in the lower case so as to be movable up and down. The slider is lowered when the pressed protrusion is pressed, and when the operating force is removed, the slider is raised to the original height position by the coil spring incorporated in the contact accommodating portion. Then, as the slider moves up and down, the movable contact contacts and separates from the fixed contact in the contact storage portion, so that the contact of the switch device is switched.

In the switch device configured as described above, since the peripheral edge of the waterproof member made of rubber or the like is sandwiched between the upper and lower cases to cover the opening end of the contact storage part, moisture can be prevented from entering the contact storage part. A highly waterproof sealed structure is realized. In addition, even if the diameter of the dome-shaped bulge is increased, the waterproofness is not affected.Therefore, even when the pressed protrusion is lengthened to cope with a long operation stroke, the pressed protrusion is sufficiently thick. It can be formed to ensure mechanical strength.
JP 2003-288820 A (page 4-5, FIG. 2)

  The above-described conventional switch device achieves high waterproof performance by sandwiching the peripheral part of the waterproof member made of rubber or the like that closes the contact housing part between the upper and lower cases, but this waterproof member is only the peripheral part. Since the waterproof member is in a fixed state, the waterproof member is elastically deformed in almost all regions except the peripheral portion when the pressed protrusion is raised and lowered. Therefore, a tensile force is applied to the peripheral portion of the waterproof member sandwiched between the upper and lower cases every time the pressed projection is raised and lowered, and the waterproofness may be gradually deteriorated when the raising and lowering operation is repeated. there were.

  Further, in the conventional switch device described above, the slider is raised and lowered with the inner wall of the contact housing portion as a guide surface. However, the plurality of positions of the slider body excluding the pressed protrusions are connected to the inner wall of the contact housing portion. Since it is difficult to set the clearance strictly, the clearance needs to have a slight margin. As a result, there is a risk that the slider main body is liable to be loose in the contact housing portion, and the slider tilts when it is lifted and may not operate smoothly.

  The present invention has been made in view of the actual situation of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a pressing operation type switch device that can be operated smoothly and that does not impair waterproofness over a long period of time. There is.

In order to achieve the above-described object, in the switch device of the present invention, a lower case in which a contact housing portion having an open end on the upper side is provided inside an outer wall having an upper opening, and the contact housing portion is disposed in the contact housing portion. a fixed contact with, and a pressed projection projecting upward from the body portion and the body portion is vertically movably held in the lower case, during the lifting operation, the contact housing of the main body portion is said lower case A slider guided by the inner wall of the part, a movable contact provided on the main body part that contacts and separates from the fixed contact as the slider moves up and down, and the pressed projection can be raised and lowered during the lifting and lowering operation of the slider A cover member fixed to the opening end of the lower case, a bulging portion fixedly fixed to a distal end portion of the pressed protrusion, the cover member, and the opening of the lower case Edge A waterproof member made of an elastic material having a flat portion which is placed on the part, the top plate portion having a through hole is formed to project the pressed protrusions and the bulge portion of the outer wall of the lower case the and a side wall which insertably is opened downward from the opening end side, and a case on fit these in the lower case, the outer wall of the lower case has a plurality of engaging projections are provided In addition, the inner wall of the contact housing portion of the lower case is formed with a step portion that defines the position of the cover member in the vertical direction, and the engagement protrusion can be snapped onto the side wall of the upper case. A plurality of engaging holes are provided, and the outer wall of the lower case is inserted into the side wall of the upper case from the opening end side of the lower case, and the engaging hole of the upper case is inserted into the engaging hole. Snap the engaging protrusion on the lower case By combining the lower case and the upper case, the lower case and the upper case are integrated, and are placed on the cover member positioned at the stepped portion and fixed to the opening end and the peripheral edge of the opening end of the lower case. The flat plate portion of the waterproof member placed was pressed by the upper case, and the flat plate portion was sandwiched between the upper case and the cover member.

Thus, if the flat plate portion of the waterproof member made of an elastic material such as rubber is placed on the cover member fixed to the opening end of the lower case and the opening edge peripheral portion of the lower case and is clamped by pressing with the upper case Even if the bulging portion is elastically deformed as the pressed protrusion is moved up and down, the flat plate portion is hardly elastically deformed, so that a tensile force hardly acts on the flat plate portion of the waterproof member. Therefore, even if the raising / lowering operation of the pressed protrusion is repeated, there is no possibility that the waterproof property is impaired, and the high waterproof property can be maintained for a long time. In addition, it is relatively easy to set the clearance between the inner wall of the guide hole of the cover member and the pressed projection relatively easily, and the lifting and lowering operation of the pressed projection can be guided by this guide hole. Even if a clearance is provided between the inner wall of the slider and the slider body, the pressed protrusion is reliably guided, so that there is no risk of the slider tilting during lifting, and a smooth lifting operation can always be expected.

  In the above-described switch device, it is preferable that a locking rib protrudes from one of the cover member and the flat plate portion, and the locking rib is press-fitted into the other. Even if the clamping force of the flat plate portion between the cover member and the cover member becomes weak due to a dimensional error, the flat plate portion can be securely fixed on the cover member. Sometimes, it becomes difficult for tensile force to act on the peripheral edge of the waterproof member, and high waterproofness is easily maintained.

  In the above-described switch device, the method of fixing the cover member to the opening end of the lower case can be selected as appropriate. However, if the cover member is press-fitted and fixed into the contact housing portion, the cover can be covered very easily. This is preferable because the member can be fixed at a predetermined position and the assemblability is improved.

The pressing operation type switch device according to the present invention holds and holds the cover member fixed to the opening end of the lower case and the flat plate portion of the waterproof member placed on the peripheral edge of the opening end of the lower case with the upper case. Even if the pressed protrusion of the slider moves up and down, the tensile force hardly acts on the flat plate portion of the waterproof member, so that the waterproofness is not impaired even if the lifting and lowering operation is repeated. Moreover, since the raising / lowering operation of the pressed projection can be reliably guided by the guide hole of the cover member, there is no possibility that the slider is inclined during the raising / lowering. Therefore, it is possible to provide a highly reliable switch device that can always operate smoothly and that does not impair waterproofness over a long period of time.

  The embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of the switch device according to the first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the switch device when not operated, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a plan view of a slider provided in the switch device, FIG. 5 is a plan view of a lower case provided in the switch device, and FIG. 6 shows an internal structure of the lower case. FIG. 7 is a cutaway perspective view, and FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a structure for fixing the cover member to the lower case.

  The press operation type switch device shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 is used as, for example, a vehicle-mounted microswitch, and is provided with a lower case 1 provided with a contact accommodating portion 2 having an open end 2a, and an insert molding technique. Three fixed contacts 3 to 5 which are fixed to the lower case 1 and disposed in the contact accommodating portion 2, a slider 6 which is erected on the lower case 1 and is held up and down by the pressed protrusion 7, It has a movable contact 8 attached to the slider 6, a coil spring 9 which is disposed in the contact accommodating portion 2 and constantly elastically urges the slider 6 upward, a guide hole 10a and a pair of locking pieces 10b. The cover member 10 fixed to the open end 2a of the lower case 1, the waterproof rubber cover 11 having the flat plate portion 11a and the dome-shaped bulged portion 11b, and the through-hole 12a are covered with the lower case 1. The upper case 12 and the cover It is mainly constituted by the pressure projection 7 from above the lever 13 for pressing operation.

  The configuration of each part will be described in detail. The lower case 1 is a box-shaped resin molded product having an upper opening, and a plurality of engaging protrusions 1 a having inclined surfaces are provided on the outer wall of the lower case 1. . These engaging projections 1a are for snap-fitting the upper case 12. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, a concave groove 1 b and a stepped portion 1 c for positioning the cover member 10 are formed on the inner wall of the contact housing portion 2 of the lower case 1.

  The fixed contacts 3 to 5 made of a metal plate extend upward from the bottom plate portion of the lower case 1, and terminal portions 3 a to 5 a extending from the embedded portions of the fixed contacts 3 to 5 extend below the lower case 1. Yes. Of the three fixed contacts 3 to 5, the fixed contacts 3 and 4 are long and the fixed contact 5 is short, and the fixed contact 4 is provided with a vertically long hole 4 b.

  The slider 6 is a resin molded product, and has a main body portion 6a incorporated in the contact housing portion 2 so as to be movable up and down, and a columnar pressed protrusion 7 protruding upward from the main body portion 6a. The body portion 6a is provided with a hollow portion 6b to which the movable contact 8 is attached. When the body portion 6a is incorporated in the contact housing portion 2, the fixed contacts 3 to 5 are positioned in the hollow portion 6b. ing. In addition, escape grooves 6c whose upper ends are tapered are formed at two locations on the outer wall of the main body 6a. As apparent from FIGS. 4 and 5, the outer shape of the main body portion 6 a viewed from above substantially matches the shape of the inner wall of the contact housing portion 2, so that the main body portion 6 a is moved to the contact housing portion when the slider 6 is raised and lowered. Can be guided by two inner walls. On the other hand, an engagement groove 7a that forms a narrow diameter portion is provided in the vicinity of the tip of the pressed projection 7, and the apex 7b on the tip side of the engagement groove 7a is formed in a circular shape.

  The movable contact 8 is formed by bending a metal plate rich in spring properties such as phosphor bronze into a U-shape, and this movable contact 8 has clip-shaped contact portions 8a to 8c, and the contact portions 8a to 8c are provided on the respective contact portions 8a to 8c. In order to extend the service life, silver chips are caulked and fixed. The movable contact 8 is attached to the hollow portion 6 b of the slider 6, and the contact portions 8 a to 8 c are brought into contact with, separated from, or slid with respect to the fixed contacts 3 to 5 as the slider 6 moves up and down. . The coil spring 9 is interposed in a compressed state between one side portion of the main body 6a near the pressed projection 7 and the bottom plate portion of the lower case 1. The coil spring 9 is a bottom surface of the pressed projection 7. Is always elastically biased upward.

  The cover member 10 is a resin molded product, and is press-fitted and fixed to the upper end portion in the contact housing portion 2 to substantially close the opening end 2a. The inner diameter of the guide hole 10a of the cover member 10 is designed to be slightly larger than the outer diameter of the pressed protrusion 7, and the pressed protrusion 7 is inserted into the guide hole 10a so as to be movable up and down. Therefore, the guide hole 10a can guide the raising / lowering operation of the pressed protrusion 7 with high accuracy. Further, the cover member 10 has a pair of locking pieces 10b protruding downward, and the height of the cover member 10 at the stepped portion 1c while press-fitting these locking pieces 10b into the concave groove 1b of the lower case 1. By defining the position, as shown in FIG. 7, the cover member 10 can be press-fitted and fixed at a predetermined position in the contact housing portion 2. However, since the locking piece 10b is press-fitted into the concave groove 1b while being loosely inserted into the clearance groove 6c of the main body portion 6a of the slider 6, there is no possibility that the locking piece 10b hinders the lifting and lowering operation of the slider 6. . In addition, minute locking ribs 10 c are projected from a plurality of locations on the upper surface of the cover member 10.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the flat plate portion 11 a of the waterproof rubber cover 11 is placed on the peripheral edge of the opening end 2 a of the lower case 1 and on the cover member 10 and pressed against the upper case 12. The locking ribs 10c bite into the bottom surface of the portion of the portion 11a sandwiched between the cover member 10 and the upper case 12 at a plurality of locations. On the other hand, a small hole 11c is provided at the top of the bulged portion 11b of the waterproof rubber cover 11, and the elastic ring is inserted into the small hole 11c through the circular-ridge-shaped top portion 7b of the pressed protrusion 7. By engaging the peripheral edge portion of the small hole 11 c with the engaging groove 7 a, the bulging portion 11 b is tightly fixed to the distal end portion of the pressed protrusion 7.

  The upper case 12 is a box-shaped resin molded product having an opening on the lower side, and the pressed protrusion 7 of the slider 6 and the swelling of the waterproof rubber cover 11 are lifted upward from a through hole 12 a provided in the top plate portion of the upper case 12. The protruding portion 11b protrudes. Engagement holes 12b are formed in a plurality of locations on the side wall of the upper case 12, and the upper and lower cases 1, 12 are snap-fitted into the engagement holes 12b by engaging the engagement protrusions 1a of the lower case 1. Are integrated.

  The lever 13 made of a metal plate has a fixed end pressed into and fixed to the lower case 1, and the free end side rotating portion 13 a can rotate a predetermined amount with the bent portion 13 b as a fulcrum. The rotating portion 13a is disposed on the pressed protrusion 7. When the rotating portion 13a is pushed down, the pressed protrusion 7 is pushed in and the slider 6 is lowered.

  Next, the operation of the thus configured switch device will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, since the slider 6 is pushed upward by the coil spring 9 in the contact accommodating portion 2 when not operated, the movable contact is moved. 8, the contact portions 8 a and 8 b are in contact with the long fixed contacts 3 and 4, respectively, and the terminals 3 a and 4 a are electrically connected, but the contact portion 8 c is not in contact with the short fixed contact 5. It is kept.

  In this state, when the rotating portion 13a of the lever 13 pushes the pressed projection 7 downward, the slider 6 is lowered while compressing the coil spring 9, so that the central portion of the bulging portion 11b is shown in FIG. While being elastically deformed into a concave shape, the movable contact 8 is lowered in the contact housing portion 2. As a result, the contact portion 8 a maintains contact with the fixed contact 3, but the contact portion 8 b moves into the hole 4 b so that it is not in contact with the fixed contact 4, and the contact portion 8 c is in contact with the short fixed contact 5. To come. Thereby, the continuity between the terminal portions 3a and 4a is interrupted, and the terminal portions 3a and 5a are brought into a conductive state.

  Further, when the pressing operation force is removed from the rotating portion 13a of the lever 13 pushing the pressed protrusion 7 in this way, the rotating portion 13a returns to its original position due to its own elasticity, and the slider 6 Since it is pushed up by the restoring force, the pressed projection 7 and the movable contact 8 rise to the height position shown in FIG. 2, and the bulging portion 11b that has been elastically deformed into the concave shape also returns to its original dome shape by its own elasticity. As a result, the contact portion 8a maintains contact with the fixed contact 3, but the contact portion 8b recovers from contact with the fixed contact 4 because it is detached from the hole 4b, and conversely, the contact portion 8c has a short fixed contact. Since it leaves 5, it returns to a non-contact state. Thereby, the continuity between the terminal portions 3a and 4a is restored, and the continuity between the terminal portions 3a and 5a is interrupted.

  As described above, in the switch device according to the present embodiment, the flat plate portion 11 a of the waterproof rubber cover 11 is placed on the peripheral edge of the opening end 2 a of the lower case 1 and the cover member 10 and is pressed by the upper case 12. Therefore, even if the bulging portion 11b is elastically deformed as the pressed protrusion 7 is moved up and down, the flat plate portion 11a is hardly elastically deformed. Moreover, since the plurality of locking ribs 10c of the cover member 10 bite into the bottom surface of the flat plate portion 11a, even if the clamping force of the flat plate portion 11a between the upper case 12 and the cover member 10 becomes weak due to a dimensional error or the like. The flat plate portion 11a can be securely fixed on the cover member 10. Therefore, even if the pressed projection 7 moves up and down and the bulging portion 11b is elastically deformed, almost no pulling force is applied to the flat plate portion 11a of the waterproof rubber cover 11, and therefore the raised and lowered operation of the pressed projection 7 is repeated. However, there is no possibility that the waterproof property is impaired, and the high waterproof property can be maintained for a long time. In this embodiment, the locking rib 10c provided on the cover member 10 is press-fitted into the flat plate portion 11a of the waterproof rubber cover 11, but on the contrary, the flat plate portion 11a is inserted into the concave portion provided on the cover member 10. You may make it the structure which press-fits the locking rib provided in.

  Further, in this switch device, since it is relatively easy to set the clearance between the inner wall of the guide hole 10a of the cover member 10 and the pressed projection 7 relatively narrow, the guide hole 10a increases the lifting and lowering operation of the pressed projection 7. Can be guided to accuracy. Therefore, even if the clearance between the inner wall of the contact housing portion 2 and the main body portion 6a of the slider 6 has a margin, the pressed projection 7 is reliably guided, so that there is no possibility that the slider 6 is tilted when moving up and down. A smooth up and down motion can always be expected.

  Further, this switch device closes the opening end 2a by press-fitting the cover member 10 into the upper end portion in the contact housing portion 2 of the lower case 1, and the cover member 10 is recessed in the lower case 1 at the time of such press-fitting. Since it is positioned and fixed by the groove 1b or the step portion 1c, the cover member 10 can be fixed in a very simple manner, and good assemblability can be expected. However, the cover member 10 may be fixed to the lower case 1 by other methods such as caulking or welding.

  In this embodiment, the pressed protrusion 7 is formed to have a sufficient thickness to ensure mechanical strength because the pressed protrusion 7 is elongated in order to correspond to a long operation stroke. However, since the dome-shaped bulging portion 11b is continuous with the flat plate portion 11a, and it is not necessary to perform waterproofing between the both 11a and 11b, the bulging portion 11b has a large diameter in order to make the pressed protrusion 7 thick. There is no effect on waterproofness even if it is changed.

  FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the switch device according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the switch device when not operated. Parts corresponding to those in FIGS. Therefore, a duplicate description is omitted.

  The switch device shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 is greatly different from the first embodiment described above in the contact structure. That is, in this embodiment, the movable contact 15 makes contact with the fixed contact 14 fixed in the contact housing portion 2 by batting, and the movable contact 15 is always elastically biased downward. An urging spring 16 is incorporated in the contact housing portion 2. When the non-operating state is maintained, the movable contact 15 is kept in an on state in contact with the fixed contact 14, but when the slider 6 is lowered while the pressed protrusion 7 is pressed downward to compress the coil spring 9, the movable contact 15 15 is driven by the slider 6 and rotates in the clockwise direction of FIG. 9, the movable contact 15 rises away from the fixed contact 14 while compressing the biasing spring 16, and is turned off. Is switched. When the pressing operation force on the pressed protrusion 7 is removed in such an off state, the compressed coil spring 9 and biasing spring 16 are restored, so that the movable contact 15 comes into contact with the fixed contact 14 again and is in the on state. Returning to FIG. 9, the pressed protrusion 7 also rises to the height position shown in FIG.

  In this embodiment, a lead wire 17 is further connected to a terminal portion 14a extending downward from the fixed contact 14, and a sealing material made of resin or the like is provided at the bottom of the lower case 1 in order to protect this connection portion. 18 (the sealing material 18 is not shown in FIG. 8). And since the bottom part of the lower case 1 is undercut at the time of shaping | molding, there is little danger that the sealing material 18 will peel from the lower case 1. FIG.

It is a disassembled perspective view of the switch apparatus which concerns on the example of 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing at the time of the non-operation of this switch apparatus. It is sectional drawing at the time of pressing operation of this switch apparatus. It is a top view of the slider with which this switch device is provided. It is a top view of the lower case with which this switch apparatus is equipped. It is a fractured perspective view which shows the internal structure of this lower case. It is sectional drawing which shows the fixing structure of the cover member with respect to this lower case. It is a perspective view of a switch device concerning the example of a 2nd embodiment of the present invention. It is sectional drawing at the time of the non-operation of this switch apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Lower case 1b Concave groove 1c Step part 2 Contact accommodating part 2a Open end 3-5, 14 Fixed contact 3a-5a Terminal part 6 Slider 6a Main body part 7 Pushing protrusion 8, 15 Movable contact point 8a-8c Contact part 9 Coil spring (Return spring)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Cover member 10a Guide hole 10b Locking piece 10c Locking rib 11 Waterproof rubber cover (waterproof member)
11a flat plate part 11b bulging part 12 upper case 12a through hole 12b engagement hole 13 lever 13a rotating part 16 biasing spring 17 lead wire 18 sealing material

Claims (3)

A lower case provided with a contact housing portion having an open end in the upper portion inside the outer wall opened upward, a fixed contact disposed in the contact housing portion , a main body portion, and projecting upward from the main body portion and and a pressed protrusions are vertically movably held in the lower case, during the lifting operation, the slider main body portion is guided by the inner wall of the contact housing portion of the lower case, the vertical movement of the slider The opening of the lower case has a movable contact provided on the main body portion that comes into contact with and separates from the fixed contact, and a guide hole that guides the pressed protrusion so as to be able to move up and down when the slider moves up and down. An elastic member having a cover member fixed to the end, a bulging portion that is tightly fixed to a distal end portion of the pressed protrusion, and a flat plate portion that is placed on the peripheral edge portion of the opening end of the cover member and the lower case. Waterproof made of material A wood and, with said side wall insertably is opened downward and pressed protrusion and the bulge portion top plate formed with a through-hole to project the said outer wall of the lower case from the open end , and a case on the mounting et al is in the lower case,
A plurality of engaging protrusions are provided on the outer wall of the lower case, and a stepped portion that defines the position of the cover member in the vertical direction is formed on the inner wall of the contact housing portion of the lower case. The side wall of the upper case is provided with a plurality of engagement holes in which the engagement protrusions can be snap-fitted,
The outer wall of the lower case is inserted into the side wall of the upper case from the opening end side of the lower case, and the engaging protrusion of the lower case is snap-fitted into the engaging hole of the upper case. As a result, the lower case and the upper case are integrated and placed on the cover member positioned at the stepped portion and fixed to the opening end and the opening end peripheral portion of the lower case. In addition, the flat plate portion of the waterproof member is pressed by the upper case, and the flat plate portion is sandwiched between the upper case and the cover member. 2. The switch device according to claim 1 , wherein a locking rib is projected from one of the cover member and the flat plate portion, and the locking rib is press-fitted into the other. 3. The switch device according to claim 1, wherein the cover member is press-fitted and fixed into the contact housing portion.

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