JP6011041B2 - Recording device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a recording apparatus.

  A recording apparatus such as an ink jet printer has a panel device (operation panel). The operation panel is a part that performs operations such as a power button while touching and pushing with a hand while visually recognizing the user (hereinafter referred to as a button). Member). In order to improve the visibility of the button member even in a dark environment such as at night, there is a configuration in which the button member is caused to emit light using light from a light source. As such a thing, there exists the technical content disclosed, for example in patent documents 1-3.

JP 2003-297171 A JP 2010-27272 A Japanese Patent No. 4047320

  Incidentally, in recent years, there has been a demand for downsizing of the recording apparatus, for example, reduction of the depth dimension of the recording apparatus. For this reason, there is a demand for thinning of the configuration relating to the panel device, and in order to meet the demand, it is necessary to reduce the distance between the light source and the button member. On the other hand, there is also a demand to emit light relatively uniformly over a relatively large area using a limited number of light sources and light guide members. Furthermore, in order to make the configuration as simple as possible, a light source may be attached to the substrate, and an arrangement in which the light source and the button member face each other may be employed.

  Here, although the structure which arrange | positions a light source inside a button member is indicated by patent document 1, in this structure, it is the arrangement | positioning in which a button member covers a light source. Therefore, no light guide member is used, and it is difficult to emit light with a relatively large area substantially uniformly. Patent Document 2 discloses a configuration in which a light guide member having a large thickness is attached to the other end side opposite to one end side (fulcrum side) of the button member. In this configuration, the thickness of the light guide member is large, and it is difficult to reduce the thickness.

  Further, in the configuration disclosed in Patent Document 2, since the area is smaller than the thickness of the light guide member, it is difficult to emit light of a relatively large area substantially uniformly. Further, in Patent Document 3, there are two substrates, one substrate and the other substrate, and a substrate on which the other light source is attached on the side farther than the substrate on which one switch is attached. Has been placed. For this reason, the light source can gain a distance from the light guide member and can emit light substantially uniformly in a relatively large area, but is thin by reducing the size between the far side substrate and the button member. It is difficult to make it easier.

  The present invention has been made based on the above circumstances, and the object of the present invention is to reduce the thickness between the substrate and the button member and to emit light over a relatively large area. An attempt is made to provide a possible recording device.

In order to solve the above problems, a recording apparatus of the present invention includes a switch mounted on the front of the substrate, and mounting et al light source on a rear surface of the substrate, and the notch portion provided in the substrate, the substrate A first light guide member that is disposed in the notch, protrudes from the back surface of the substrate, emits light emitted from the light source , and emits light to the front side of the substrate, and the first light guide member A second light guide member that is disposed on the front side of the substrate and receives light emitted from the first light guide member and has a pressing portion for pressing the switch, and is provided in the second light guide member And a button member that is illuminated by being emitted from the first light guide member so that the light incident on the first light guide member from the light source enters the second light guide member . And in the 1st light guide member, an overlap part arranged in the state where it is piled up on the substrate, a fitting part fitted in the notch part, and between the fitting part and the overlap part A stepped step portion is provided. When the button member is pushed, the pushing portion of the second light guide member pushes the switch.

In the case of such a configuration, the first light guide member is disposed in the notch portion of the substrate, protrudes from the back surface of the substrate, enters the light emitted from the light source, and emits the light to the front side of the substrate. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the thickness between the substrate and the first light guide member. Accordingly, it is possible to reduce the thickness between the substrate and the button member. The light from the light source is incident on the first light guide member , and the light is emitted from the first light guide member toward the second light guide member provided with the button member. Therefore, it is possible to emit a relatively large area in the button member. Moreover, it becomes possible to position a 1st light guide member using a level | step-difference part, and the ease of attachment of a 1st light guide member improves.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, in the above-described invention, the button member is integrally provided with a second light guide member that allows light emitted from the first light guide member to be incident thereon. It is preferable that a light emitting unit for emitting the light guided by the second light guide member to the outside is provided.

  In such a configuration, the presence of the second light guide member integrated with the button member makes it possible to guide light well to the light emitting portion even inside the button member, and the light is emitted from the light emitting portion. It becomes possible to make it.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, in the above-described invention, a back case is disposed on the back side of the substrate, and the first light guide member is sandwiched between the back case and the substrate. .

  In such a configuration, the first light guide member can be fixed by sandwiching the first light guide member between the back case and the substrate.

It is a perspective view which shows the structure of a recording device. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of a panel apparatus. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the structure of the panel apparatus which removed the back surface case. It is a fragmentary perspective view which shows arrangement | positioning of each member of the notch part vicinity of a board | substrate. It is a partial sectional side view which shows the internal structure of a panel apparatus. It is a partial perspective view which shows the attachment aspect of each member of a notch part vicinity from the back side. It is a partial sectional side view which shows an example of the internal structure of the conventional panel apparatus. It is a partial sectional side view which shows an example of the internal structure of the conventional panel apparatus.

  Hereinafter, a recording apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, as shown in FIG. 1, there are cases where an XYZ rectangular coordinate system is set and described, but the recording apparatus 10 is installed with the width direction of the recording apparatus 10 as the X direction. The direction away from the installation surface is the Z direction, and the X direction and the direction orthogonal to the Z direction are the Y direction. The Y direction corresponds to the direction in which recording paper (not shown) is conveyed.

  Further, X1 in the X direction indicates the right side in FIG. 1, and X2 in the X direction indicates the left side in FIG. Further, in the recording apparatus 10 of FIG. 1, the side on which the panel device 30 is located is the front side, and the opposite side is the back side, Y1 in the Y direction is the front side of the recording apparatus 10, and Y2 in the Y direction is the recording apparatus 10. The back side. Further, Z1 in the Z direction indicates the upper side, and Z2 in the Z direction indicates the lower side. The recording apparatus 10 is, for example, an ink jet printer, but the present invention may be applied to other than the ink jet printer. The ink jet printer may be an apparatus employing any ejection method as long as it is an apparatus capable of recording by ejecting ink.

<Regarding Configuration of Recording Apparatus 10>
As shown in FIG. 1, the recording apparatus 10 includes a housing 20, and an exterior portion of the housing 20 is covered with an exterior panel 21. A panel device 30 is attached to the housing 20.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the panel device 30 is provided so as to be rotatable with respect to the housing 20 around a rotation shaft 31. However, the panel device 30 may adopt a configuration that does not rotate with respect to the housing 20. In addition, the panel device 30 includes a front case 32, and further includes a button member 40, a substrate 50, a tact switch 60, a light source 61, a rear light guide member 70, a rear case 80, and the like.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the front case 32 is located on the front side of the recording apparatus 10. Furthermore, a transparent film-like surface member 33 is provided on the front side (Y1 side) of the surface case 32, and the surface member 33 covers various operation parts 34. In addition, the operation part 34 can be visually recognized by the user, for example, by performing decoration including printing on the back surface side (Y2 side) of the surface member 33 or the front surface side (Y1 side) of the surface case 32. ing.

  On the other hand, the surface case 32 is provided with a notch hole 35, and the notch hole 35 penetrates the surface case 32. In the cutout hole 35, the surface protrusion 41 of the button member 40 is disposed. The surface protruding portion 41 is a portion of the button member 40 that is visually recognized and touched by the user, and is disposed in the cutout hole 35 with a slight gap with respect to the inner wall of the cutout hole 35.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the button member 40 has a light guide base portion 41 c, a flange portion 42, an arm portion 43, a fulcrum portion 44, and a downward protruding portion 45 along with the above-described surface protruding portion 41. The surface protrusion part 41 is provided with the light-shielding part 41a and the light emission part 41b, and the light-shielding part 41a is a part by which the decoration which a user can visually recognize was given to the front side (Y1 side). In the present embodiment, the light shielding part 41a is made of, for example, a resin (light shielding resin) that is non-transparent or inferior in light transmission to the transparent member, and significantly blocks light compared to the light emitting part 41b. It is provided as follows.

  The light emitting unit 41b is provided around the light shielding unit 41a so as to surround the light shielding unit 41a in the configuration illustrated in FIGS. The light guide base 41c is located on the back side (Y2 side) of the light emitting part 41b and faces a back light guide member 70 described later. The light emitting portion 41b and the light guide base portion 41c are made of transparent resin, and thereby can emit light from the light source 61 to the outside.

  In the present embodiment, the flange portion 42, the arm portion 43, the fulcrum portion 44, and the downward projecting portion 45 other than the light emitting portion 41b and the light guide base portion 41c are also made of transparent resin. As shown in FIG. 5, the button member 40 is formed by two-color molding of a light-shielding resin that forms the light-shielding portion 41a and a transparent resin.

  However, instead of forming the button member 40 by such two-color molding, the button member 40 may be formed of only a transparent resin, for example. In that case, the light shielding part 41a is formed by forming a light shielding printing or a light shielding thin film on the part corresponding to the light shielding part 41a of the transparent member, or attaching a light shielding member. Further, the light emitting part 41b, the light guide base part 41c, the flange part 42, the arm part 43, the fulcrum part 44, and the downward projecting part 45 formed of transparent resin will be described as the front light guide member 46. The front light guide member 46 has a function of guiding incident light. In particular, the light emitting part 41b and the light guide base part 41c have such a function. However, at least one of the other flange portion 42, arm portion 43, fulcrum portion 44, and downward projecting portion 45 may not have a function of guiding incident light. The front light guide member 46 corresponds to the second light guide member.

  Note that the above-described transparent resin includes a resin that is not transparent but has high light transmittance. Similarly, the transparent member includes a member that is not transparent but has high light transmittance. Examples of such a material include a milky white resin / member in which a diffusing material is contained, and a resin / member which is translucent due to a scratch (unevenness or the like) on the surface.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the flange portion 42 is located around the light guide base portion 41c and is thinner than the light guide base portion 41c. Further, the light guide base 41c and the flange 42 have a larger area than the cutout hole 35, and when the light guide base 41c and the flange 42 are passed through the cutout hole 35 along the Y direction, the light guide base 41c and the flange 42 are blocked. Is provided.

  The arm portion 43 is a connecting portion that connects the flange portion 42 and the fulcrum portion 44, and the fulcrum portion 44 is a portion that is supported (fixed) between the support portion of the front case 32 and the support portion of the back case 80. Yes, the button member 40 swings with the fulcrum portion 44 as a fulcrum.

  The downward projecting portion 45 is provided on the flange portion 42 on the side away from the fulcrum portion 44 (X1 side), and the downward projecting portion 45 projects further from the back surface of the flange portion 42 toward the back surface side (Y2 side). Part. In the configuration shown in FIG. 4, three downward projecting portions 45 are provided side by side in the Z direction, and a central lower projecting portion 45 a (corresponding to a pushing portion) among them is a tact switch 60 (described later). It is provided facing. And when the surface protrusion 41 is pushed in, this downward protrusion 45a pushes in the tact switch 60. The downward projecting portion 45b that does not face the tact switch 60 contacts the substrate 50 and prevents the button member 40 from being excessively pushed.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, a substrate 50 having an electrical circuit is provided inside the panel device 30, and a tact switch 60 and a light source 61 are attached to the substrate 50. In this embodiment, the tact switch 60 (corresponding to the switch) is a switch for switching on / off the power supply of the recording apparatus 10 by being pushed. However, the tact switch 60 may be a switch for performing other operations. The tact switch 60 is provided on the front side (Y1 side) of the substrate 50 and is provided at a position facing the downward protruding portion 45a, and can be pushed by the downward protruding portion 45a.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the light source 61 is provided on the back side (Y2 side) of the substrate 50. The light source 61 is, for example, an LED (Light Emitting Diode), but the light source 61 is not limited to an LED, and other light emitting members such as a lamp may be used. Further, as shown in FIGS. 3, 5, and 6, the light source 61 is provided at a position close to the notch 51 provided in the substrate 50. Thereby, the light source 61 can efficiently make light incident on the rear light guide member 70 described later.

  As described above, the substrate 50 is provided with the notch 51. As shown in FIG. 3, the notch 51 is formed by notching the end side (corner portion) of the substrate 50 into a rectangular shape. A rear light guide member 70 is disposed in the notch 51. Therefore, the size of the notch 51 is also a size corresponding to the attachment of the rear light guide member 70. In the present embodiment, the notch 51 is provided at the corner of the substrate 50, but the notch 51 may be provided in a hole-like form at a portion other than the corner. Moreover, the notch part 51 may be notched in forms other than rectangular shape.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 to 6, the rear light guide member 70 as the first light guide member is disposed in the notch 51. Similar to the front light guide member 46, the back light guide member 70 is formed of a transparent resin and has a function of guiding light. A step portion 71 is provided along two adjacent sides of the rear light guide member 70. The stepped portion 71 is formed by providing the back side (Y2 side) portion of the back light guide member 70 in a larger area than the front side (Y1 side) portion of the back light guide member 70. In the form, it is provided in a substantially L shape.

  The front portion 71 a of the stepped portion 71 contacts the peripheral portion of the cutout portion 51 in the substrate 50. In this state, the back case 80 is positioned on the back side of the substrate 50, and the back case 80 is in contact with the back light guide member 70 so that the back light guide member 70 is prevented from moving in the Y direction. Held in.

  An insertion hole 72 is formed on one side where the stepped portion 71 does not exist in each side of the rear light guide member 70. The insertion pin 32 a of the surface case 32 is inserted into the insertion hole 72. Further, a receiving portion 32b that comes into contact with the front surface of the rear light guide member 70 is provided on the base side of the insertion pin 32a. As described above, the back light guide member 70 is provided with the stepped portion 71 and the insertion hole 72 so that the back light guide member 70 is sandwiched between the substrate 50, the front surface case 32, and the back surface case 80. It is attached in a state in which the positional deviation with respect to them is suppressed.

  In the following description, a portion of the back light guide member 70 from the stepped portion 71 to the back side (Y2 side) is referred to as an overlap portion 73. The overlap portion 73 is arranged so as to overlap (overlap) the substrate 50. Further, the overlap part 73 protrudes from the substrate 50 to the back side (Y2 side). Further, a portion of the rear light guide member 70 that is fitted into the notch 51 is referred to as a fitting portion 74. When the fitting part 74 and the light guide base part 41c are projected along the Y direction, the fitting part 74 is provided in a large area so as to cover the entire light guide base part 41c.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 6, the back light guide member 70 is provided with a recess 75. In the configuration shown in FIGS. 3 and 6, the recess 75 is formed in a shape in which the overlap portion 73 of the rear light guide member 70 is cut out in an arc shape. The light source 61 attached to the substrate 50 is located in the recess 75. Due to the presence of the depression 75 and the arrangement of the light source 61 in the depression 75, the light is efficiently incident on the rear light guide member 70. In the configuration shown in FIGS. 3 and 6, two depressions 75 are provided, but the number of depressions 75 may be any number.

  In addition, a reflective layer 76 is provided on the back surface of the back light guide member 70. The reflection layer 76 is a part for reflecting the light incident on the back light guide member 70 from the light source 61 toward the front side. In the present embodiment, the reflective layer 76 is formed by white printing, but the reflective layer 76 may be formed by a method other than white printing.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the panel device 30 is provided with a back surface case 80, and the back surface case 80 covers each member of the panel device 30 from the back surface side (Y2 side).

<About the effects>
According to the recording apparatus 10 configured as described above, the fitting portion 74 of the back light guide member 70 is fitted into the cutout portion 51 of the substrate 50. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the thickness between the substrate 50 and the rear light guide member 70. Accordingly, it is possible to reduce the thickness between the substrate 50 and the button member 40. Light from the light source 61 is incident on the rear light guide member 70, and light is emitted from the rear light guide member 70 toward the button member 40. Therefore, the button member 40 can emit a relatively large area.

  Here, the configurations of the conventional panel devices 30A and 30B are schematically shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, respectively. FIG. 7 schematically illustrates the configuration of the panel device 30 </ b> A disclosed in Patent Document 1, and FIG. 8 schematically illustrates the configuration of the panel device 30 </ b> B disclosed in Patent Document 3.

  In the configuration shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the substrate 500 does not have a portion corresponding to the notch 51. Then, the light emitted from the light source 610 is directly incident on the light guide member 460. Therefore, a relatively large space is required between the light source 610 and the light guide member 460 for the diffusion of light from the light source 610, and it is difficult to reduce the thickness of the panel devices 30A and 30B. .

  On the other hand, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, since the fitting portion 74 of the back light guide member 70 is fitted into the cutout portion 51 of the substrate 50, Thinning between the optical member 70 and the panel device 30 can be achieved. Further, the light from the light source 61 is incident on the rear light guide member 70, so that a large space is not required for light diffusion. Further, when the light that has passed through the back light guide member 70 reaches the button member 40, it is possible to cause the button member 40 to emit a relatively large area.

  In this embodiment, the front light guide member 46 is integrated with the button member 40. Due to the presence of the front light guide member 46, light can be guided well to the light emitting part 41b even inside the button member 40, and can be emitted from the light emitting part 41b.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the flange portion 42 is provided with a downward protruding portion 45a. Therefore, it is possible to push in the tact switch 60 using the downward projecting portion 45a.

  In the present embodiment, since the light source 61 is attached to the back side (Y2 side) of the substrate 50, the light that directly goes from the light source 61 to the button member 40 is blocked by the substrate 50. Thereby, the light from the light source 61 goes to the button member 40 through the back light guide member 70. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the light from the light source 61 from illuminating an illumination part other than the target, as in the case where the light source 61 is attached to the front side (Y1 side) of the substrate 50.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the back light guide member 70 is provided with a stepped portion 71. Therefore, it becomes possible to position the rear light guide member 70 using the stepped portion 71, and the ease of mounting the rear light guide member 70 is improved.

  In the present embodiment, the rear light guide member 70 is sandwiched between the substrate 50 and the rear case 80 in a state where the overlap portion 73 is in contact with the substrate 50. Therefore, the back light guide member 70 can be fixed with a simple configuration.

<Modification>
Although the first and second embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention can be variously modified. This will be described below.

(1) Modification 1
In the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the rear light guide member 70 protrudes to the rear side (Y2 side) from the substrate 50 has been described. And the light of the light source 61 is made to enter from the overlap part 73 which protrudes to the back side (Y2 side). However, the rear light guide member 70 may adopt a configuration that protrudes more to the front side (Y1 side) than the substrate 50. In that case, it is preferable to employ a configuration in which the light source 61 is provided on the front side (Y1 side) of the substrate 50.

(2) Modification 2
In the above-described embodiment, the button member 40 employs a configuration in which the light shielding portion 41a and the front light guide member 46 are provided integrally. However, the button member 40 may employ a configuration in which the light guide 41a is present but the front light guide member 46 is not present. In the case of adopting such a configuration, light can be emitted to the outside through a gap between the button member 40 and the cutout hole 35. In addition, when employ | adopting the structure in which the front light guide member 46 does not exist in the button member 40, it is preferable that the part extended toward the tact switch 60 from the light-shielding part 41a exists.

(3) Modification 3
Moreover, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the hollow part 75 is formed in the shape which notched the overlap part 73 in circular arc shape. However, the recess 75 is not limited to the shape cut out in an arc shape, and may adopt a shape other than the shape cut out in an arc shape, such as a polygon cut out shape or a curved surface shape other than an arc shape.

(4) Modification 4
Further, as the light source 61 in the above-described embodiment, for example, a configuration using a plurality of LEDs of different colors may be employed. In the case of such a configuration, it is possible to cause the light emitting unit 41b to emit light with various colors.

(5) Modification 5
In the above-described embodiment, the light emitting unit 41b is described as being present around the light shielding unit 41a. However, in the surface protrusion part 41, the positional relationship of the light-shielding part 41a and the light emission part 41b is not specifically limited. For example, the light shielding part 41a may be disposed so as to be offset toward one side of the surface protrusion 41 in the XZ plane, and the light emitting part 41b may be disposed so as to be offset toward the other side opposite thereto. It may be formed in a predetermined pattern shape so as to reach the center side or other part. Further, for example, a plurality of back light guide members 70 may be used, and the light emitting portion 41 b may be configured to correspond to any one of the plurality of back light guide members 70.

(6) Modification 6
In the above-described embodiment, the concept of the recording apparatus 10 can include a laser printer in addition to the above-described ink jet printer. That is, the present invention can be applied to a laser printer. In the concept of the recording apparatus 10, liquid other than ink (including the liquid itself, a liquid material in which functional material particles are dispersed or mixed in the liquid, and a fluid material such as a gel) is ejected. The present invention can be applied to such a fluid ejecting apparatus. As such, a liquid containing a material such as an electrode material or a color material (pixel material) used for manufacturing a liquid crystal display, an EL (electroluminescence) display, and a surface emitting display is dispersed or dissolved. There are a liquid ejecting apparatus, a fluid ejecting apparatus that ejects a bio-organic matter used for biochip manufacturing, a fluid ejecting apparatus that ejects a liquid that is used as a precision pipette and serves as a sample, and the like.

(7) Modification 7
Further, the concept of the recording apparatus 10 of the present invention includes a micro hemispherical lens (optical lens) used in a fluid ejecting apparatus, an optical communication element and the like that ejects lubricating oil pinpoint to a precision machine such as a watch or a camera. ) Etc., a fluid ejecting apparatus that ejects a transparent resin liquid such as an ultraviolet curable resin onto the substrate, a fluid ejecting apparatus that ejects an etching solution such as acid or alkali to etch the substrate, etc., gel (for example, physical There is a fluid ejector for ejecting a fluid such as a gel.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Recording device, 20 ... Housing, 21 ... Exterior panel, 30, 30A, 30B ... Panel device, 31 ... Rotating shaft, 32 ... Surface case, 32a ... Insertion pin, 32b ... Receiving part, 33 ... Surface member , 34 ... operation part, 35 ... notch hole, 40 ... button member, 41 ... surface protrusion, 41a ... light shielding part, 41b ... light emitting part, 41c ... light guide base part, 42 ... flange part, 43 ... arm part, 44 ... fulcrum part, 45, 45b ... downward projecting part, 45a ... downward projecting part (corresponding to pushing part), 46 ... front light guide member (corresponding to second light guide member), 50 ... substrate, 51 ... notch part, 60 ... tact switch (corresponding to the switch), 61 ... light source, 70 ... back light guide member (corresponding to the first light guide member), 71 ... step part, 71a ... front part, 72 ... insertion hole, 73 ... overlap part 74 ... fitting part, 75 ... hollow part, 76 ... reflective layer, 80 Rear case, 460 ... light guide member, 500 ... substrate, 610 ... light source

Claims (3)

A switch mounted on the front of the board;
And mounting et al light source on a back surface of the substrate,
A notch provided in the substrate;
A first light guide member that is disposed in the notch of the substrate, protrudes from the back surface of the substrate, receives light emitted from the light source , and emits the light to the front side of the substrate ;
A second light guide member that is disposed on the front side of the substrate with respect to the first light guide member, has a push-in portion for making the light emitted from the first light guide member incident and pushing the switch; ,
The light that is provided on the second light guide member and is incident on the first light guide member from the light source is emitted by being emitted from the first light guide member so as to enter the second light guide member. A button member;
Equipped with,
The first light guide member has an overlapped portion arranged in a state of being overlapped with the substrate, a fitting portion fitted into the cutout portion, and a stepped shape between the fitting portion and the overlapping portion. And a step portion.
The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the button member is pushed, the push portion of the second light guide member pushes the switch . The recording apparatus according to claim 1,
The button member is integrally provided with the second light guide member ,
Further, the button member is provided with a light emitting portion that emits the light guided by the second light guide member toward the outside.
A recording apparatus. The recording apparatus according to claim 1 or 2 ,
A back case is disposed on the back side of the substrate,
The first light guide member is sandwiched between the back case and the substrate.
A recording apparatus.