JP5923688B2 - Card activation type switch box - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a card activation type switch box installed on a wall surface in a room in order to turn on / off an electric load using a card.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a card activation type switch box that uses a card for on / off control of an electrical load connected to a power source. The switch box includes optical means for optically recognizing the presence of the card when the card is inserted into the housing from an insertion port provided on the upper surface of the housing. The optical means includes a light emitting element and a light receiving element, and when the optical path from the light emitting element to the light receiving element is interrupted by the card, it is recognized that the card has been inserted, and an on control signal for turning on the electric load is output. .

  However, since the insertion opening formed on the upper surface of the housing is opened when the card is not inserted, dust entering the housing from the insertion opening gathers around the light receiving element, and the card is inserted by this dust. May be mistakenly recognized. Furthermore, even when the card is inserted, external light is incident on the light receiving element through a gap remaining between the card and the insertion slot, and the card is not inserted even though the card is inserted. There is a problem that the load cannot be turned on when the current state is recognized.

JP-A-4-368729

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and the object of the present invention is to provide a reliable on / off control by the card without malfunctioning when the card is not inserted and when the card is inserted. It is to provide a card activated switch box that can be performed.

  To achieve this purpose, the card activation type switch box is used while preventing the entry of dust from the outside when the card is not inserted and the mechanism for preventing the entrance of light from the outside when the card is inserted. It is a technical problem to enable a person to recognize a card insertion slot.

Card activated switch box according to the present invention, the card is provided with a housing with an insertion port of the top opening to be inserted from the top, the light emitting element and the light receiving element is accommodated in a housing. The light emitting element is configured to irradiate light to a part of the card inserted into the housing through the insertion slot, the light receiving element is disposed facing the light emitting element, and the card is placed in the housing based on the output of the light receiving element Card recognition means for discriminating between the on state inserted in the card and the off state in which no card is inserted is provided. The card recognizing means outputs an on control signal for turning on the electric load in an on state and an off control signal for turning off the electric load in an off state with respect to the electric load connected to the external power source. Configured. An insertion cylinder that guides the card into the housing extends from the periphery of the insertion slot toward the inside of the housing, and a shutter that opens and closes the lower end opening of the insertion cylinder is provided. The shutter is molded integrally with the insertion cylinder, and the shutter is coupled to the insertion cylinder via a hinge member having an elastic restoring force that urges the shutter from the open state to the closed state. The shutter closes the opening in the housing of the insertion cylinder when the card is not inserted. When the card is inserted, the card is opened so that the card can be inserted into the housing under the force of the card. In addition, the back surface of the card is brought into close contact with the wall surface of the insertion cylinder by the elastic restoring force so that the gap between the lower end of the insertion cylinder and the card is closed, and at the same time, the front end of the shutter is in close contact with the surface of the card Composed.

  The shutter having such a configuration can prevent dust from entering the housing through the insertion tube when the card is not inserted, and between the card and the lower end opening of the insertion tube at the back of the insertion port when the card is inserted. It is possible to prevent the external light from entering the light receiving element by closing the gap formed between them, and to eliminate malfunction caused by dust or external light. In addition, since the shutter is provided at the lower end of the insertion cylinder, the presence of the insertion slot for inserting the card is not impaired by the shutter, and the insertion slot can be easily recognized by the user.

  In a card activation type switch box having means for optically recognizing a card in order to control on / off of an electrical load using the card, dust can intrude into the housing from the card insertion slot when the card is not inserted. When the card is inserted, external light is prevented from entering the housing, and malfunction of the optical recognition means is eliminated.

1 is a schematic perspective view showing a card activation type switch box according to an embodiment of the present invention. The disassembled perspective view which shows the principal part of a card starting type switch box same as the above. (A) The schematic sectional drawing which shows the state by which the card | curd is not inserted in the switch box same as the above. (B) The schematic sectional drawing which shows the state by which the card | curd was inserted in the switch box same as the above. The block diagram which shows the electric circuit with which a switch box same as the above is provided. The schematic sectional drawing which shows the change aspect of the shutter used for a switch box same as the above. The schematic sectional drawing which shows the other change aspect of the shutter used for a switch box same as the above.

(Embodiment 1)
The card activation type switch box 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is a device that uses the card 200 for on / off control of a plurality of electric loads 310 connected to an external power supply 300, and is installed in a hotel guest room, for example. Used. In this case, when the card 200 given to the user is inserted, the electrical load 310 is connected to the external power source 300 so that the lighting fixtures in the cabin and other electrical loads 310 can be used.

  Hereinafter, it demonstrates in detail based on an accompanying drawing. As shown in FIG. 1, the card activation type switch box 100 includes a housing 30 having an insertion port 21 for inserting a card 200 on the upper surface, and a processing circuit 50 accommodated in the housing 30. Used by being fixed to the wall surface.

The processing circuit 50 realizes card recognition means for optically recognizing the card 200 inserted into the housing 30 from the insertion port 21, and a light emitting element 51 that outputs detection light and a light receiving element that receives the detection light. The light emitting element 51 and the light receiving element 52 are arranged so that a part of the card 200 inserted into the housing 30 blocks the optical path of the detection light between the light emitting element 51 and the light receiving element 52. Is done. As shown in FIG. 4, the processing circuit 50 includes a detection circuit 53 and a signal generation circuit 54 that determine the output of the light receiving element 52 and detect the presence or absence of the card 200. The detection circuit 53 determines whether the card 200 is inserted or not based on the output of the light receiving element 52 when the light from the light emitting element 51 is blocked by the card 200. The signal processing circuit 54 receives the output of the detection circuit 53 and generates an ON control signal for turning on the electric load 310 when the detection circuit 53 determines that the card 200 is inserted. It is configured to create an off control signal for turning off the electrical load 310 at the time of insertion. The on control signal and the off signal are transmitted via the constant voltage circuit 55 while being superimposed on the power line 56 that supplies power from the external power supply 300 to the electric load 310.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the housing 30 includes a case 10 that houses an electronic component that implements the processing circuit 50, and a header 20 that is fitted into the upper end of the case 10, and the back surface of the case 10 is blocked by a base 60. A terminal block 61 for electrically connecting the processing circuit 50 to the external power supply 300 is formed on the base 60. The header 20 is molded from a synthetic resin, and an insertion cylinder 22 extending downward from the periphery of the insertion port 21 toward the inside of the housing 30 is molded integrally with the header 20. The insertion tube 22 guides the card 200 inserted from the insertion port 21 into the housing 30, and the widths of the insertion port 21 and the insertion tube 22 are set larger than the thickness of the card 200.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a shutter 23 that opens and closes a lower end opening of the insertion cylinder 22 is provided at the lower end of the insertion cylinder 22. The shutter 23 is molded so as to be an integral structure continuous with the insertion cylinder 22, and continues to one side of the insertion cylinder 22 surrounding the lower end opening of the insertion cylinder 22 via a hinge member 24. The hinge member 24 is given an elastic restoring force that urges the shutter 23 in a direction to close the lower end opening of the insertion tube 22. When the card 200 is inserted, the shutter 23 opens against this elastic restoring force, and the lower end of the card 200 advances into the housing 30.

  A light emitting diode (LED) is used as the light emitting element 51, and a photodetector (PD) is used as the light receiving element 52, and is arranged at a predetermined interval before and after the lower end of the card 200 inserted into the housing 30. . When the card 200 is not inserted, the detection light from the light emitting element 51 enters the light receiving element 52. When the card 200 is inserted, the detection light is blocked by the card 200. Not inserted is determined.

  The shutter 23 is given an elastic restoring force that biases the shutter 23 in a closed state in which the lower end opening of the insertion tube 22 is closed. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 3A, when the card 200 is not inserted, the shutter 23 is held in a state where the insertion tube 22, that is, the insertion port 21 is closed, and dust enters the housing 30 from the outside. Since the output from the light receiving element 52 is not collected around the light receiving element 52 and the dust is reduced, it is possible to prevent the processing circuit 50 from misidentifying that the card 200 is inserted. Further, as shown in FIG. 3B, when the card 200 is inserted, the shutter 23 brings the back surface of the card 200 into close contact with the wall surface of the insertion cylinder 22 by the elastic restoring force, and at the same time, the tip of the shutter 23 is the card 200. In this way, external light is prevented from entering the light receiving element 52 through the insertion port 21. As a result, it is possible to prevent the processing circuit 50 from erroneously recognizing that the card 200 is not inserted even though the card 200 is inserted.

As shown in FIG. 2, the processing circuit 50 described above is realized by electronic components mounted on the printed board 40 together with the light emitting element 51 and the light receiving element 52, and the printed board 40 is fixed inside the housing 30. The housing 30 accommodates another printed circuit board 41 on which a display element 42 that is an LED is mounted. The display element 42 is provided to display a state in which the card 200 is not inserted or inserted, and is exposed to the front surface of the housing 30.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the processing circuit 50 includes an address setting unit 57, and the address setting unit 57 transmits the on control signal and the off control signal transmitted from the signal generation circuit 54 on the power line 56, that is, the card activation. An address specifying the electric load 310 managed by the type switch box 100 is stored. This address is added to the control signal and transmitted to the power line 56, and controls the electrical load 310 specified by the address among the plurality of electrical loads 310 connected to the power line 56.

  In addition, although this embodiment described the case where the insertion port 21 was provided in the upper surface of the housing 30, the place which provides the insertion port 21 is not limited, For example, the case where an insertion port is provided in a side surface etc. Including.

The present invention includes various modifications in addition to one aspect that is a specific configuration of the shutter 23 described above. These modifications will be described below.
(Modification 1)
In the modification shown in FIG. 5, a shutter 23A formed of a member different from the insertion tube 22A is connected to one side of the lower end of the insertion tube 22A via a hinge member 24A, and the shutter 23A is closed by a spring member 25 of another member. The structure biased to a state is shown. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment.

Also in this modified mode, when the card 200 is not inserted, the shutter 23A closes the insertion slot 21 to prevent the intrusion of dust, and when the card 200 is inserted, the shutter 23A is opened by the card 200 and then placed on one side of the card 200. Closely close the lower end opening of the insertion tube 22A to prevent the incidence of external light.
(Modification 2)
The modification shown in FIG. 6 shows an example in which the lower end portion of the insertion tube 22B is molded with an elastic member such as synthetic rubber, and the shutter 23B is defined by this elastic member. The shutter 23B is composed of two elastic pieces. The two elastic pieces are configured so as to be integrally continuous from the two sides before and after the lower end of the insertion tube 22B. Each elastic piece is urged in a direction to close the opening of the insertion tube 22B by an elastic restoring force applied thereto. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment. Also in this embodiment, when the card 200 is not inserted, the elastic piece serving as the shutter 23B closes the insertion slot 21 to prevent dust from entering, and when the card 200 is inserted, the elastic piece is opened by the card 200 and then the card 200 is inserted. The lower end opening of the insertion tube 22B is closed in close contact with one surface 200 to prevent external light from entering. It is also possible to mold the entire insertion cylinder 22B with an elastic material so that the two sides before and after facing each other function as an elastic piece.

  The card activation type switch box of the present invention is installed in a hotel guest room, for example, and a card given to a user is inserted, so that a lighting device or other electric load in the guest room can be used. Connect these electrical loads to an external power source.

21 Insertion Port 22, 22A, 22B Insertion Tube 23, 23A, 23B Shutter 24, 24A Hinge Member 25 Spring Member 30 Housing 51 Light Emitting Element 52 Light Receiving Element 100 Card Activation Switch Box 200 Card 300 External Power Supply 310 Electric Load

Claims (1)

A card activated switch box installed on the wall surface for turning on and off the electrical load by using the card, a housing insertion opening top opening a card is inserted from the top surface is formed,
A light emitting element that irradiates light to a part of the card inserted into the housing from the insertion port, a light receiving element disposed to face the light emitting element,
Card recognition means for determining an on state in which a card is inserted into the housing and an off state in which no card is inserted based on an output of the light receiving element;
With
The card recognition means is configured to output an on control signal for turning on the electric load in the on state and an off control signal for turning off the electric load in the off state, with respect to the electric load,
An insertion cylinder for guiding the card into the housing extends from the periphery of the insertion slot toward the inside of the housing;
A shutter is provided to open and close an opening of the insertion tube in the housing;
The shutter is molded integrally with the insertion cylinder, and the shutter is coupled to the insertion cylinder via a hinge member having an elastic return force that urges the shutter from the open state to the closed state,
The shutter closes the opening inside the housing of the insertion cylinder when the card is not inserted,
When the card is inserted, it is opened so that the card can be inserted into the housing under the force of the card, and the shutter is brought into close contact with the wall surface of the insertion cylinder by the elastic return force, A card activation type switch box , wherein a gap between a lower end of the insertion tube and a card is closed, and at the same time, the front end of the shutter is in close contact with the surface of the card.