JP4954928B2 - Lever switch device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a lever switch device, and more particularly to a lever switch device applied to a vehicle such as an automobile.

  As an example of a lever switch device applied to a vehicle such as an automobile, it has a lever for operating a turn signal switch, and by swinging the lever in a direction perpendicular to the direction for operating the turn signal switch, for example, Some are configured to perform a passing operation and a dimmer operation. The movable contact moves linearly on the substrate by the swinging operation of the lever, and a predetermined switch operation is performed by the movement of the movable contact (for example, Patent Document 1).

According to this lever switch device, since a rotatable operation knob is provided in the lever and the lever body is configured to be swingable, a vehicle lever switch with a simple lever structure and various switch operations is provided. It becomes possible.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-250772

  However, according to the lever switch device of Patent Document 1, for example, in order to perform a passing operation and a dimmer operation, the lever is swung in a direction orthogonal to the direction in which the turn signal switch is operated to move the movable contact on the substrate. In the case of linear movement, it is necessary to set the length of the arm on the lever side that drives the movable contact to a certain extent. In particular, when the stroke amount of the movable contact is set to be large, there is a problem that the length of the arm on the lever side that swings becomes large and the lever switch device becomes thick.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a lever switch device that can set a large stroke amount of a movable contact that is moved by a swinging operation of a lever.

[1] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a lever main body that is rotatably supported around a predetermined rotation center axis, and a cam portion that is rotationally driven by a swinging motion caused by the rotation of the lever main body. And a contact unit that rotates integrally with the cam portion and performs a predetermined switch operation by the rotational drive with a substrate on which a predetermined contact pattern is formed, and There is provided a lever switch device characterized in that a load applied in a rotation axis direction of the contact unit that is rotationally driven in accordance with the swing motion of the lever main body is received by a portion other than the contact portion.

[2] The lever switch device according to [1] above, wherein the portion other than the contact portion is a flange portion of the cam portion.

[3] The lever body is rotatably supported via a bracket rotatably supported on the vehicle body side about a predetermined rotation center axis. [1] Or the lever switch apparatus as described in [2] may be sufficient.

  According to the embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to provide a lever switch device that can set a stroke amount of a movable contact that moves by a lever swinging operation.

(First embodiment of the present invention)
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a lever switch device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the lever main body 101, the interlocking member 200, and the contact unit 300.

  The lever switch device shown in FIG. 1 is disposed around a steering column of a vehicle (not shown), and the direction A in FIG. 1 is a substantially forward direction of the vehicle. Therefore, FIG. It is sectional drawing which looked at from the up direction of vehicles.

  The body 1 has a front case 2 and a rear case 3, and the front case 2 and the rear case 3 constitute an outer shell of the body 1. A middle case 4 and a substrate 5 are provided between the front case 2 and the rear case 3. A bracket 6 is provided between the front case 2 and the middle case 4 so as to be rotatable around a shaft portion 7.

  The direction of rotation of the bracket 6 is a direction around the rotation axis B of the lever portion 100 around the shaft portion 7. A groove 8 having an arc shape concentric with the shaft portion 7 is formed on the upper side of the middle case 4 so as to guide the rotation of the bracket 6, and the bracket 6 moves while sliding in the groove 8. Possible convex portions 9 are formed. Further, three portions of the middle case 4 are provided with support ribs 4a for supporting a flange portion 312 formed on the contact unit 300 described later from below.

  Further, a hollow portion 10 is formed on the right side of the bracket 6 in FIG. 1, and a base end portion of the lever portion 100 is inserted into the hollow portion 10. As shown in FIG. 2, the lever portion 100 is configured such that the shaft portion 101 a of the lever main body 101 is rotatably fitted in the bearing hole portion 6 b of the wall portion 6 a of the bracket 6. That is, the lever portion 100 can swing around the shaft portion 101a. The direction of rotation about the shaft portion 101a of the lever portion 100 is an arrow C direction (rear) shown in FIG. 1 and a D direction (front) opposite thereto. In this case, the lever part 100 has a form protruding to the right side of the body 1 in FIG. Further, a cam portion 310 of a contact unit 300, which will be described later, is rotatably fitted to the outer peripheral portion 310c of the bottom portion 6c of the bracket 6 to guide the linear movement of the contact unit 300 in the E and F directions shown in FIG. A guide hole 6d is formed.

  The lever portion 100 includes a long lever body 101 having a cylindrical hollow cross-sectional shape, a first operation knob 110, a first operation knob 110, and a first operation knob 110, which are incorporated in the hollow portion of the lever body 101 to constitute a rotation operation knob. The first remote shaft 111 that rotates integrally with the first operation knob 110, the first switch 66 that can be switched by the rotation operation of the first operation knob 110, the second operation knob 120, and the second operation knob 120 rotate together. The second remote shaft 121 and the second switch 76 that can be switched by rotating the second operation knob 120 are configured.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the lever body 101 is provided with a shaft portion 101 a that is rotatably fitted in the bearing hole portion 6 b of the wall portion 6 a of the bracket 6 on the outer periphery. The shaft portion 101a may be formed integrally with the lever main body 101, or may be a member to which a pin is separately added by press-fitting, screwing, or the like. The shaft portion 101a has a cylindrical shape and is fitted in the bearing hole portion 6b so as to be rotatable without rattling. As a result, the lever body 101, that is, the lever portion 100 can swing around the shaft portion 101a. Has been. By this swinging motion, the lever portion 100 can swing upward (E direction) and downward (F direction) shown in FIG. 1, but when the lever is not operated, a moderation mechanism (not shown) is used. It is supposed to be located in the upper and lower neutral positions.

  The lever main body 101 drives the interlocking member 200 in the directions E and F in FIG. 1 by swinging the lever portion 100 by the operation knob on the opposite side of the operation knob (first operation knob 110 and the like) across the shaft portion 101a. A connecting portion 130 is formed. The connecting portion 130 has two leg portions 130a formed in parallel at a predetermined interval, and each leg portion 130a has an elongated hole portion 130b. Further, a groove portion 130c for restricting the rotation of the interlocking member 200 described later is formed. Between the two leg portions 130a, there is a space in which a later-described interlocking member 200 can be disposed, and the connecting pin 201 of the interlocking member 200 is rotatably and slidably connected to the elongated hole portion 130b of the leg portion 130a. By this connection, the interlocking member 200 can be moved substantially linearly in the directions E and F of FIG.

  The interlocking member 200 is formed on a cylindrical surface, and the connecting pin 201 is provided to stand on the outer peripheral portion 200a so as to face approximately 180 degrees, and a contact unit to be described later on a circumference rotated approximately 90 degrees with the connecting pin 201. A cam pin 202 for driving the cam 300 is provided upright on the outer peripheral portion 200a. In addition, a regulation pin 203 for allowing only the linear movement of the interlocking member 200 (moving substantially linearly in the directions E and F in FIG. 1) corresponding to the groove part 130c of the connecting part 130 is erected on the outer peripheral part 200a. Is provided.

  The contact unit 300 includes a cam part 310 and a contact part 320. The cam portion 310 includes a cylindrical portion 311 having a cam groove 310a and a flange portion 312. The cam groove 310a is formed in a spiral shape in the cylindrical portion 311, and the width dimension of the cam groove 310a is formed with a gap that allows the cam pin 202 erected on the interlocking member 200 to slide and perform cam operation. ing. The cylindrical portion 311 is formed with an inner peripheral portion 310b that fits so that the outer peripheral portion 200a of the interlocking member 200 can rotate and can move substantially linearly in the E and F directions in FIG. The outer peripheral portion 310c has a predetermined diameter corresponding to the six guide holes 6d.

  The flange portion 312 is formed integrally with the lower portion of the cam portion 310, and a load receiving portion 312a that receives a load in the vertical direction (directions E and F in FIG. 1) is provided on the upper and lower surfaces of the outermost peripheral portion of the flange portion 312. Is formed. The load receiving portion 312a on the upper surface of the flange portion 312 is provided with a convex portion 312b in order to receive an upward load at the bottom portion 6c of the bracket 6 to stabilize the contact and reduce friction caused by rotation. Further, the downward load is received by the support rib 4 a of the middle case 4. Therefore, the flange portion 312 receives a load in the vertical direction in the rotation axis direction of the contact unit 300 that is rotationally driven by the swing motion of the lever body 101 by the flange portion 312, and the gap between the flange portion 312 and the bottom portion 6 c. And by setting the gap between the flange portion 312 and the support rib 4a to be rotatable, it is possible to receive all or most of the load in the vertical direction.

  The contact portion 320 has elasticity for making electrical contact with the substrate 5 on which a contact pattern 51 described later is formed, for example, a copper-based or stainless-based conductive plate spring material or the like. Is formed. In the present embodiment, the contact portion 320 is formed with three lead portions 320a, 320b, and 320c radially from substantially the center of the contact portion 320, and has a substantially constant bending shape as shown in FIG. Lead portions 320 a to 320 c are formed so as to abut on the pattern 51. That is, since the load in the vertical direction of the rotation axis direction of the contact unit 300 that is rotationally driven with the swinging motion of the lever body 101 is received by a portion other than the contact portion 320 (the flange portion 312 of the cam portion 310). The vertical deflection of the lead portions 320a to 320c is substantially constant regardless of the rotation of the contact portion 320, and a substantially constant contact pressure is ensured.

  The contact part 320 is firmly attached to the cam part 310 at the center part 320d so as not to rotate with a screw or the like. Thereby, the cam part 310 and the contact part 320 comprise the contact unit 300 integrally. In addition, since the cam part 310 performs rotation operation, it is preferable to take measures against rotation in addition to the mounting method using the screws described above. For example, a rotation of the contact part 320 with a part of the contact part 320 is provided. Protrusions for preventing this are formed.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the substrate 5 is mounted on the middle case 4 at a position where it abuts on the lead portions 320 a to 320 c of the contact unit 300. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the substrate 5 and the contact portion 320 as viewed from above in FIG. On the substrate 5, contact patterns 51 (51a, 51b, 51c) corresponding to the lead portions 320a to 320c are formed. The contact patterns 51a and 51b are formed at positions where they are electrically connected to the lead portions 320a and 320b when the contact unit 300 is rotated by a predetermined amount, and the other end not connected to the contact patterns 51a and 51b is a connector (not shown). Is connected to an ECU that controls the lever device. Similarly, the contact patterns 51a and 51c are patterned at positions where they are electrically connected to the lead portions 320a and 320c when the contact unit 300 rotates by a predetermined amount, and the other end side not connected to the contact patterns 51a and 51c is illustrated. It is connected to an ECU (not shown) that controls the lever device by a connector that is not used. The contact pattern 51a is connected to the ground level as a common terminal.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the substrate 5 has three holes 5 a so that the support rib 4 a can penetrate from the middle case 4. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 1, the support rib 4 a penetrating the substrate 5 supports the flange portion 312 of the contact unit 300 from below.

(Dimmer and passing operation by lever switch device)
When the lever portion 100 is rotated in the C direction shown in FIG. 1, the connecting portion 130 swings in the E direction from the upper and lower neutral positions. The connecting part 130 linearly moves the interlocking member 200 in the E direction via the connecting pin 201. Since the cam pin 202 moves in the cam groove 310a by the interlocking member 200 that moves linearly, the contact unit 300 rotates in the G direction. As the contact unit 300 rotates, the contact part 320 rotates in the G direction by a predetermined angle.

  FIG. 4A is a plan view of the substrate 5 and the contact part 320 as viewed from above in FIG. 1, showing a state where the substrate 5 and the contact part 320 have been rotated by a predetermined angle in the G direction from the neutral position shown in FIG. In this state, the lead part 320a and the contact pattern 51a, and the lead part 320b and the contact pattern 51b are electrically connected, and the dimmer control of the headlamp is performed by an ECU connected by a connector or the like (not shown).

  On the other hand, when the lever portion 100 is rotated in the D direction shown in FIG. 1, the connecting portion 130 swings in the F direction from the upper and lower neutral positions. The connecting part 130 linearly moves the interlocking member 200 in the F direction via the connecting pin 201. Since the cam pin 202 moves in the cam groove 310a by the interlocking member 200 that moves linearly, the contact unit 300 rotates in the H direction. As the contact unit 300 rotates, the contact part 320 rotates in the H direction by a predetermined angle.

  FIG. 4B is a plan view of the substrate 5 and the contact portion 320 as viewed from above in FIG. 1, showing a state in which the substrate 5 and the contact portion 320 have been rotated by a predetermined angle in the H direction from the neutral position shown in FIG. In this state, the lead part 320a and the contact pattern 51a, and the lead part 320c and the contact pattern 51c are electrically connected, and the headlamp passing control is performed by the ECU connected by a connector or the like (not shown).

(Light control operation by lever switch device)
A first remote shaft 111 is rotatably incorporated in the lever body 101, and a first operation knob 110 that is rotated by a driver is attached to one end of the first remote shaft 111. A first switch 66 that can be switched by rotating the first operation knob 110 is attached to the other end of the first remote shaft 111. The first switch 66 is fixed to the other end portion of the first remote shaft 111 and has a rotor having a contact portion that rotates integrally with the first remote shaft 111 and the connection state between the contact portion is changed by the rotation of the rotor. Thus, the stator is provided with a switch substrate having a switch pattern that enables a switch operation such as ON / OFF. The first switch 66 is formed with a hole penetrating in the center, and a second remote shaft 121 described later passes therethrough. The first switch 66 functions as, for example, a light control switch that controls turning on or off of a small light (not shown).

  The 1st remote shaft 111 has a hollow part, and the 2nd remote shaft 121 is rotatably arrange | positioned by the coaxial structure (concentric form) in this hollow part. A second operation knob 120 is attached to one end of the second remote shaft 121. A second switch 76 that can be switched by rotating the second operation knob 120 is attached to the other end of the second remote shaft 121. The second switch 76 is fixed to the other end portion of the second remote shaft 121 and has a contact portion that rotates integrally with the second remote shaft 121, and the connection state between the contact portion changes due to the rotation of the rotor. Thus, the stator is provided with a switch substrate having a switch pattern that enables a switch operation such as ON / OFF. For example, the second switch 76 functions as a light control switch for controlling turning on / off of a headlight (not shown).

(Turn signal operation by lever switch device)
In addition, a third switch that performs a switch operation according to the rotation of the bracket 6 is provided in the body 1 (not shown). For example, the third switch functions as a switch for controlling a turn signal.

  When the lever main body 101 is rotated about the rotation axis B around the shaft portion 7 shown in FIG. 1, the lever main body 101 rotates together with the bracket 6 about the shaft portion 7 of the bracket 6. As a result, a third switch (not shown) is operated in the case of a right turn or a left turn, and turn signal switch control is performed. It should be noted that the rotation operation of the lever body 101 is configured to give a feeling of moderation by a well-known moderation mechanism (not shown).

(Effects of the first embodiment of the present invention)
The first embodiment of the present invention has the following effects.
(1) The swinging operation of the lever unit 100 is converted into the rotation operation of the contact unit 300, and the dimmer control and the passing control of the headlamp are performed. Therefore, even if the swing operation amount of the lever portion 100, that is, the movement amount on the first operation knob 110 side is small, by setting the rotation radius R of the lead portions 320a to 320c shown in FIG. The stroke amount of the contact portion 320 can be set large without increasing the thickness of the lever switch device. As a result, the degree of freedom in design is increased and stable switch operation is possible.
(2) A configuration in which a load other than the contact portion 320, that is, the flange portion 312 of the cam portion 310, receives a load in the vertical direction of the rotation axis of the contact unit 300 that is rotationally driven in accordance with the swinging motion of the lever body 101. Therefore, the vertical deflection of the lead portions 320a to 320c is substantially constant regardless of the rotation of the contact portion 320, and a substantially constant contact pressure is ensured. This enables a stable switch operation and improves reliability.

(Second embodiment of the present invention)
FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the lever main body 101 and the contact unit 300 of the lever switch device according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the first embodiment, the swinging motion of the lever unit 100 is converted into the rotation operation of the contact unit 300 through the interlocking member 200. However, in the second embodiment, the lever unit 100 is not connected through the interlocking member 200. The contact unit 300 is driven to rotate directly from the swing operation of 100.

  The lever body 101 moves the contact unit 300 to the side opposite to the operation knob (the first operation knob 110 etc.) across the shaft portion 101a of the lever portion 100 by swinging the lever portion 100 by the operation knob. A connecting portion 130 for driving in the direction is formed. The connecting portion 130 has two leg portions 130a formed in parallel at a predetermined interval, and cam pins 132 are formed on the respective leg portions 130a so as to face each other.

  The contact unit 300 includes a cam portion 310 and a contact portion 320, as in the first embodiment. The cam portion 310 includes a cylindrical portion 313 in which a cam groove 310 a is formed and a flange portion 312. The cam groove 310a is formed in a substantially spiral shape in the cylindrical portion 313, and the width dimension of the cam groove 310a is formed with a gap that allows the cam pin 132 erected on the interlocking member 200 to slide and perform cam operation. Has been. The cam groove 310 a formed in the cylindrical portion 313 has a cam shape that approximates a spiral shape in which the swinging motion of the lever portion 100 is weighted by the spiral motion caused by the rotational motion of the contact portion 320.

  Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, and the cam pin 132 acts on the cam groove 310a of the contact unit 300 by the swing of the lever portion 100 by the operation knob. Since the switch operation in which the contact portion 320 rotates while being guided by 6d and rotates by a predetermined angle is the same, the description thereof is omitted.

(Effects of the second embodiment of the present invention)
According to the second embodiment of the present invention, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, the interlocking member 200 can be omitted, and thus there are effects such as downsizing and cost reduction.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a lever switch device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the lever main body 101, the interlocking member 200, and the contact unit 300. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the substrate 5 and the contact portion 320 as viewed from above in FIG. FIG. 4A is a plan view of the substrate 5 and the contact part 320 as viewed from above in FIG. 1, showing a state where the substrate 5 and the contact part 320 have been rotated by a predetermined angle in the G direction from the neutral position shown in FIG. FIG. 4B is a plan view of the substrate 5 and the contact portion 320 as viewed from above in FIG. 1, showing a state in which the substrate 5 and the contact portion 320 have been rotated by a predetermined angle in the H direction from the neutral position shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the lever main body 101 and the contact unit 300 of the lever switch device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Body, 2 ... Front case, 3 ... Rear case, 4 ... Middle case, 4a ... Supporting rib 5 ... Board | substrate, 5a ... Hole part, 6 ... Bracket, 6d ... Guide hole, 6a ... Wall part, 6c ... Bottom part 6b DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS ... Bearing hole part, 7 ... Shaft part, 8 ... Groove, 9 ... Convex part, 10 ... Cavity part 51, 51a, 51b, 51c ... Contact pattern 66 ... 1st switch, 76 ... 2nd switch, 100 ... Lever part, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 ... Lever main body 101a ... Shaft part, 110 ... 1st operation knob, 111b ... Stator, 111a ... Rotor 111c ... Hole part, 111 ... 1st remote shaft, 120 ... 2nd operation knob 121b ... Stator, 121a ... Rotor, 121 ... 2nd remote shaft, 130c ... Groove part 130a ... Leg part, 130 ... Connection part, 130b ... Long hole part, 132 ... Cam pin 200a ... Outer peripheral part, 200 ... Interlocking member, 201 ... Connection pin, 202 ... Pin 203 ... Restriction pin, 300 ... Contact unit, 310a ... Cam groove, 310 ... Cam part 310b ... Inner peripheral part, 310c ... Outer peripheral part, 311 ... Cylindrical part, 312 ... Flange part 312b ... Protruding part, 312a ... Load receiving part 313 ... Cylindrical part, 320 ... Contact part 320a, 320b, 320c ... Lead part, 320d ... Center part

Claims (3)

A lever body supported rotatably about a predetermined rotation center axis;
A predetermined switch operation is performed by the rotational drive between the cam portion that is rotationally driven by the swinging motion of the lever body and the substrate that rotates integrally with the cam portion and on which the predetermined contact pattern is formed. A contact unit having a contact portion to perform,
The lever switch device is configured to receive a load applied in a rotation axis direction of the contact unit that is rotationally driven with the swinging motion of the lever main body at a portion other than the contact portion.   The lever switch device according to claim 1, wherein the portion other than the contact portion is a flange portion of the cam portion.   3. The lever according to claim 1, wherein the lever body is rotatably supported via a bracket that is rotatably supported on the vehicle body side about a predetermined rotation center axis. 4. Switch device.

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