JP4426048B2 - Switch device and movable contact - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a switch device suitable as an indoor wiring device for turning on / off a lighting device or the like, and a movable contact incorporated in the device.
[0002]
[Prior art]
As a conventional switch device of this type, for example, there is one disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-151122 previously proposed by the present applicant. This switch device has a structure in which the movable contact is swung (inverted) in conjunction with the swinging operation of the operating member, and the movable contact formed on the contact is brought into contact with and separated from the opposed fixed contact. . Here, the movable contact has an engaging piece, and the driving contact portion of the operating element engages with the tip of the engaging piece, and the pressing force from the operating element is received at the tip of the engaging piece. Swing.
[0003]
FIG.6 (b) is a perspective view which shows the movable contact of the said conventional switch apparatus. As shown in the figure, the conventional movable contact 130 is formed by forming two slits 132 in a vertical direction in a contact main body 131 made of a flat metal plate, thereby enclosing the intermediate portion surrounded by the slits 132. The movable spring 134 having the movable contact 133 is formed at the portion, and the side portion of each slit 132 is used as the engagement piece 136, and the distal end portion of the engagement piece 136 is engaged with the drive contact portion of the operation element. It was.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the conventional switch device described above, the engagement piece 136 of the movable contact 130 receives the pressing force from the operation element orthogonal to the plane portion as shown by the arrow in FIG. For this reason, there is a possibility that the movable contact 130 may be slightly delayed with respect to the swinging operation of the operation element. Moreover, when the engaging piece 136 is repeatedly elastically deformed and deformed for a long time by the pressing force from the operation element, the durability of the movable contact 130 (particularly, the engaging piece 136) may be reduced due to metal fatigue. there were.
[0005]
The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and by increasing the rigidity of the movable contact, the movable contact is swung quickly following the swinging operation of the operating element, and the swinging load is not affected. The purpose is to improve the durability of the movable contact.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a container formed by a case main body and a lid, a movable contact having a movable contact and supported swingably in the container, and swingable by the lid. A switch device comprising: an operating element that is supported and formed with a driving contact portion that engages with a movable contact; and a fixed terminal that has a fixed contact and the fixed contact is disposed opposite to the movable contact in the body. The movable contact is configured as follows.
That is, the movable contact forms a plate-like movable spring in the intermediate part, provides a movable contact on the surface part of the movable spring, and forms engagement pieces that engage with the drive contact part of the operating element on both sides. In addition, the movable spring and the engagement piece are bent.
[0007]
As described above, since the bending is formed between the movable spring and the engagement piece, the rigidity of the movable contact is increased, and bending when receiving a pressing force from the operation element can be suppressed.
[0008]
In addition, the movable contact is preferably configured to engage with the drive contact portion of the operation element at the edge of the engagement piece. As a result, the engaging piece receives a pressing force from the operating element at the edge, so that the bending deformation is suppressed, and the movable contact can be swung quickly following the swinging operation of the operating element, and the metal fatigue Thus, the durability of the movable contact can be further improved.
[0009]
In the movable contact configured as described above, the proportion of the engagement piece with respect to the entire width is small. Specifically, only the plate thickness of the engagement piece becomes a part of the entire width of the movable contact, and in a dimension range excluding this, Since the width of the movable spring can be set arbitrarily, the degree of freedom in design is expanded. In addition, the width of the movable spring can be arbitrarily set independently of the engagement piece, and the movable spring and the engagement piece are cut between the movable spring and the engagement piece so that only the movable spring can be flexibly bent. It is preferable to form a notch.
[0010]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
1 is an exploded perspective view of a switch device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the switch device, FIG. 3A is a plan view, FIG. 3B is a side view, FIG. 4 is a side sectional view.
[0011]
In these drawings, reference numeral 1 denotes a container body, and the container body 1 is composed of a case body 2 having an upper surface opened and a lid body 3 attached to the opening of the case body by a fastening metal fitting 4. On the boss surface of the lid 3, an opening for exposing an operation element 40 described later is formed. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the case main body 2 is formed with an electric wire insertion hole 5 into which an electric wire is individually inserted and a tool insertion hole 6 for operating the release button 13 opened downward. is there.
[0012]
Inside the container 1, a fixed terminal 10, a connection terminal 11, a presser spring 12, and a release button 13 are accommodated (see FIG. 4). Each of the terminal portions 10 and 11 is formed in a U shape by copper alloy. The fixed terminal 10 is formed with a narrow contact piece 15 provided with a fixed contact 14 at the tip by folding the intermediate part, and the connecting terminal 11 is folded with its lower end. Thus, the connecting piece 16 is formed.
[0013]
Terminals 10 and 11, in a state with its opening of the U-shape on the bottom side of the case body 2, are respectively the support wall thus supports provided on the case body 2. Each of these terminals 10 and 11 is disposed opposite to the electric wire insertion hole 5, and a screw spring 12 is configured by disposing a holding spring 12 inside each of the terminals 10 and 11.
[0014]
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the presser spring 12 is formed with locking pieces 12 a and 12 b at both ends by bending one end into a U shape and the other end into an S shape. These locking pieces 12a and 12b extend in the same direction, and hold the electric wire inserted from the electric wire insertion hole 5 at each end edge. Further, the leading edges of the locking pieces 12a and 12b are opposed to the inner end face of the release button 13 disposed so as to face the tool insertion hole 6, and each release member 13 is moved by a tool such as a screwdriver. The front end edges of the stop pieces 12a and 12b are pressed and elastically deformed, whereby the state where the electric wire is clamped can be released. The connection piece 21 of the support 20 is electrically connected to the connection piece 16 formed on the connection terminal 11.
[0015]
The support 20 includes a connection piece 21, a leg piece 22 that rises continuously at one end of the connection piece 21, and a V-shaped piece 23 that is bent into a substantially V shape and is continuous with the upper end of the leg piece 22. The leg piece 22 provides elasticity to the V-shaped piece 23. And the lower part of the movable contact 30 mentioned later is supported by the valley part of the V-shaped piece 23 so that rocking | fluctuation is possible.
[0016]
The movable contact 30 is made of a metal plate, and has a movable spring 32 and an engagement piece 33 extending from the base 31a of the contact main body 31 as shown in FIG. The movable spring 32 is formed in a flat plate shape and extends from the central portion of the base portion 31a. A movable contact 34 is provided on the surface portion 32 a of the movable spring 32. The movable contact 34 is disposed opposite to the fixed contact 14 in the container 1, and is brought into and out of contact with the fixed contact 14 in conjunction with a swing operation of an operation element 40 described later.
[0017]
Further, near the base portion of the movable spring 32, a dogleg-shaped bent portion 32b is formed, and in this embodiment, the surface portion 32a of the movable spring 32 is substantially flush with the engagement piece 33 described later. It has been adjusted to be placed. If necessary, the surface portion 32a of the movable spring 32 can be disposed in front of or behind the engagement piece 33, and the contact pressure of the movable contact 34 with respect to the fixed contact 14 is arbitrarily adjusted by adjusting the position of the surface portion 32a. Is possible.
[0018]
The engagement pieces 33 are formed on both sides of the movable spring 33 (that is, on both sides of the contact body 31). These engagement pieces 33 are bent at a substantially right angle from the base 31 a of the contact main body 31. By bending the engagement piece 33 in this way, the rigidity of the movable contact 30 is increased. The movable contact 30 is swingable around the lower end supported by the support body 20, but as a result of bending the engaging piece 33 as described above, the flat portion of the engaging piece 33 is It is arranged substantially parallel to the swing direction.
[0019]
In addition, a notch 35 is formed between the movable spring 32 and the engagement piece 33, and the flat movable spring 32 is elastically bent to reduce the impact when contacting the fixed contact 14. It becomes the composition which is done. Each engagement piece 33 has a shape that becomes narrower as it goes to the tip, and a pointed tip is engaged with a V-shaped groove of the operation element 40 described later.
[0020]
As shown in FIG. 7, the movable contact 32 having the above-described configuration has only the plate thickness t as the dimension occupied by the engagement piece 33 in the entire width D. Therefore, the width d of the movable spring 32 can be arbitrarily set within the range of D-2t. For example, the magnitude of the spring force can be adjusted by adjusting the width of the movable spring 32.
[0021]
As shown in FIG. 8, the operation element 40 includes an operation block 41 and a pair of operating arms 42 extending from the bottom center of the operation block 41. Among these, the operation block 41 penetrates the opening of the lid 3 and the upper part is exposed to the outside. Further, a fulcrum portion 43 having a triangular shape which is pointed upward is projected from the center of both side surfaces of the operation block 41. The upper end edge of each fulcrum part 43 is engaged with a fan-shaped groove 3 a (see FIG. 1) provided on the inner side surface of the lid 3 and opening downward.
[0022]
A V-shaped groove 44 constituting a driving contact portion with the engaging piece 33 of the movable contact 30 is formed at the lower end of each operating arm 42, and the distal end portion of each engaging piece 33 is formed in the V-shaped groove 44. Are engaged with each other (see FIG. 8). Further, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 8, a coil spring 24 showing a specific example of the urging means is provided at the lower part of the support body 20, and the support body 20 and the movable contact are urged by the urging force of the coil spring 24. The child 30 is pushed up. As a result, the distal end portion of the engagement piece 33 formed on the movable contact 30 maintains the engagement state with the V-shaped groove 44 formed on the operating arm 42 of the operation element 40, and the fulcrum formed on the operation block 41. The part 43 holds the engaged state of the lid 3 with respect to the fan-shaped groove 3a.
[0023]
With such a configuration, the inner surface of the V-shaped groove 44 formed in the operating arm 42 presses the distal end portion of the engagement piece 33 as the operating element 40 swings around the fulcrum portion 43. As described above, since the flat portion of the engagement piece 33 is disposed substantially in parallel with the swinging direction of the movable contact 30, the pressing force on the engagement piece 33 is indicated by an arrow in FIG. , Acting on the front edge portion of the engagement piece 33 (that is, acting in parallel with the flat portion of the engagement piece 33). Therefore, the engagement piece 33 hardly bends even when it receives a pressing force from the operation arm 42.
[0024]
Next, the operation of the above-described switch device will be described.
FIG. 5A is a side sectional view showing a state (OFF state) in which the movable contact of the switch device is separated from the fixed contact, and FIG. 5B shows a state in which the movable contact is in the middle position of the swing range. It is side surface sectional drawing. Note that FIG. 4 shown above shows a state (ON state) in which the movable contact of the switch device is in contact with the fixed contact.
[0025]
First, when the upper side of the operating element 40 is pressed from the OFF state shown in FIG. 5A (the upper right side in FIG. 5), the operating element 40 swings clockwise around the fulcrum 43, The integral operating arm 42 swings similarly. As described above, the tip of the engaging piece 33 formed on the movable contact 30 is engaged with the V-shaped groove 44 provided at the lower end of the operating arm 42. The leading edge of the engagement piece 33 is pressed. As a result, the movable contact 30 swings counterclockwise around the lower end supported by the support body 20, and the movable contact 34 contacts the fixed contact 14 as shown in FIG.
[0026]
Now, in the process in which the movable contact 30 swings, the pressing force acting on the contact 30 includes a downward component force. Accordingly, the movable contact 30 is slightly pushed downward against the urging force of the coil spring 24. The amount of subsidence is maximized when the movable contact 30 reaches an intermediate position (position shown in FIG. 5B) of the swing range, and decreases thereafter. In this way, the movable contact 30 operates by drawing a trajectory in which the swing around the lower end and the movement in the vertical direction are superimposed. Therefore, the movable contact 34 is in sliding contact with the fixed contact 14 so as to rub up slightly from below.
[0027]
On the other hand, when the upper part of the operating element 40 on the protruding side (the upper left part in the figure) is pressed from the ON state shown in FIG. 4, the operating element 40 swings counterclockwise around the fulcrum 43, and is integrated therewith. The operating arm 42 swings similarly. As the operating arm 42 swings, the distal end edge of the engagement piece 33 formed on the movable contact 30 is pressed. As a result, the movable contact 30 is watched around the lower end supported by the support 20. The movable contact 34 is separated from the fixed contact 14 by swinging in the direction. At this time, since the movable contact 34 is separated from the fixed contact 14 so as to rub down slightly, the arc discharge generated at the time of separation is suppressed compared to the momentary separation. it can.
Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment.
[0028]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, the both sides of the contact main body constituting the movable contact are bent and the both sides are engaged pieces that engage with the drive contact of the operating element. The rigidity of the movable contact is increased, and the bending when receiving a pressing force from the operation element can be suppressed.
[0029]
Further, if the movable contact is configured to receive a load from the operating element at the end edge of the engaging piece, the bending deformation of the engaging piece is further suppressed, and the swinging operation of the operating element can be followed quickly. The movable contact can be swung, and the durability of the movable contact can be further improved by suppressing metal fatigue.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a switch device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an appearance of the switch device.
3A is a plan view of the switch device, and FIG. 3B is a side view of the switch device.
FIG. 4 is a side cross-sectional view of the switch device.
5A is a side cross-sectional view showing a state (OFF state) in which the movable contact of the switch device is separated from the fixed contact, and FIG. 5B is a state in which the movable contact is at an intermediate position of the swing range. It is side surface sectional drawing shown.
6A is a perspective view showing a movable contact of the switch device, and FIG. 6B is a perspective view showing a conventional movable contact.
FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the width of the engagement piece and the movable spring in the entire width of the movable contact according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a side view showing an engagement state between the engagement piece of the movable contact and the operating arm of the operation element.
[Explanation of symbols]
1: Body 2: Case body 3: Cover body 4: Fastening bracket 5: Electric wire insertion hole 6: Tool insertion hole 10: Fixed terminal 11: Connection terminal 12: Presser spring 13: Release button 14: Fixed contact 15: Contact piece 16: Connection piece 20: Support body 21: Connection piece 22: Leg piece 23: V-shaped piece 24: Coil spring 30: Movable contact 31: Contact main body 31a: Base 32: Movable spring 33: Engagement piece 34: Movable contact 35: Notch 40: Operator 41: Operation block 42: Actuating arm 43: Supporting piece 44: V-shaped groove (drive contact portion)

Claims (4)

A container formed by a case main body and a lid, a movable contact having a movable contact and supported so as to be swingable within the container, and supported by the lid so as to be swingable and related to the movable contact. In a switch device comprising: an operating element formed with a driving contact portion to be combined; and a fixed terminal having a fixed contact, the fixed contact being disposed opposite to the movable contact in the body.
The movable contact is formed with a plate-shaped movable spring having a movable contact and an engagement piece that engages with the drive contact portion of the operation element.
The movable spring extends from the center of the base of the movable contact,
The engaging piece extends from both sides of the base of the movable contact, is bent at a substantially right angle from the base, and is configured so that the flat portion is substantially parallel to the swinging direction.
The switch device is characterized in that a notch is formed between the movable spring and the engagement piece . The switch device according to claim 1,
The switch device, wherein the movable contact is engaged with a drive contact of the operating element at an edge of the engagement piece. It is incorporated in a switch device including a container body formed by a case body and a lid, an operation element that is swingably supported by the lid and has a drive contact portion, and a fixed terminal having a fixed contact, A movable contact supported in a swingable manner in the body,
A plate-shaped movable spring having a movable contact and an engagement piece that engages with the drive contact portion of the operation element are formed,
The movable spring extends from the center of the base of the movable contact,
The engaging piece extends from both sides of the base of the movable contact, is bent at a substantially right angle from the base, and is configured so that the flat portion is substantially parallel to the swinging direction.
The movable contact is characterized in that a notch is formed between the movable spring and the engagement piece . The movable contact according to claim 3 ,
The movable contact element, wherein the engagement piece engages with a driving contact part of the operation element at an edge.

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